Category Archives: Romance

From the Bard to Broadway

This past weekend I had the privilege of seeing one of the best written, most witty  musical comedies ever penned on Broadway: Something Rotten. I’ve mentioned many times on these blog pages that I can’t write “funny.” I can be funny in real life, but putting the laugh on the page is torture for me. Not so much the writers of Something Rotten. From the opening line to the last curtain call, you will laugh. Uproariously. Belly-quiveringly. Soul-shakingly.

The story tells the tale of  William Shakespeare’s fictional rivals, The Bottom brothers, Nick and Nigel. They want one hit, just one fabulous play to be produced so they can throw their success in Will’s face – as he does unendingly and fabulously in their’s and every other playwright of the era’s faces. This Will Shakespeare is no meek little Bard. No, he is conceited, arrogant, mocking, self-serving, and more than anything, hysterical.

All the characters were so well written and so thought-out I was jealous. The writers of this play could be best selling fiction authors if they chose – any maybe they were in another life – I have no idea. But this jealousy got me thinking: how come I can’t write funny?

I can do tears and emotions like no one’s business.  I can take a heart wrenching incident and get it on the page so that the reader starts to well up and reach for a hankie.  I can talk to people and make them hold their sides in laughter, but I can’t translate that to the page.

Weird, isn’t it?

So, are you funny? Can your write funny? I’m interested in how authors go about being funny on the page. Let’s discuss….

 

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Filed under Author, Contemporary Romance, Romance

A visit from author Starr Gardinier

Hi, I’m Starr Gardinier. At least that’s my pen name. I write in the paranormal genre and love regaling readers with (im)plausible stories. As my bio states, I’m a paralegal by day. While I love the profession that allows the analytical side of my brain to be put to use, writing is my absolute passion. “The Other Side: Melinda’s Story” is the first in theOther Side series. The second, “The Other Side: Trent’s Story” should be out fairly soon. The third, and what I believe to be the final book—depending on what the characters tell me—“The Other Side: Ben’s Story” is implanted in my mind, but not yet on paper. Look for all three books by following my blog or checking my website.
 
I’ll leave it up to my readers to determine if the creative side of my brain is worthwhile. Please feel free to send all comments and questions to me at sgardinier@queenwriter.com. I look forward to them and will respond.
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*******If you comment, more than a word or two, you’ll automatically be entered to win a digital copy of “The Other Side: Melinda’s Story”! One name will be chosen and that winner will be notified via email, so be sure to include your email address! This is for today only, Saturday, September 19, 2015. Good luck!
 
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Blurb: 
            Melinda’s family is dead, killed for information that is hidden deep within her mind. Her father tries to warn her from the ‘Other Side’ that she is in danger from the killers who want what only she can give them. Committed to Skyview Haven, she must determine if the ‘Other Side’ truly exists or if it is a trick of her heart and mind. With time running out Melinda must determine who she can trust. Is it the ghosts of her family, a boy who may not be who he appears to be, or the doctor who is determined to cure her? Can she figure out the truth before it is too late?
Here’s an exciting excerpt from The Other Side
“Don’t be scared. It’s just me.”
“Suddenly, he was there. Standing right in front of me.”
“Dad!”
“I hugged him. I missed him and needed to feel his arms wrapped around me. I forgot about being mad at him. He finally pulled away from me.
“I can’t go to your mother yet. She needs to believe first. Like you do.”
“Believe that you’re dead but not dead?”
“Something like that.”
“What do you want?”
“I didn’t want you to go wake your mother until I spoke with you.”
“How did you know where I was going?”
“I’m in your head. I know almost all your thoughts.”
“Great. I couldn’t have a moment’s peace when he was alive and now he was in my head knowing all my thoughts. That’s just what a young, teenage girl wanted.
“Leave me the hell alone,” I told him as I tried to move around him.
“As much as I missed him, and as much as I knew I wasn’t making all of this up, I still wondered if I was imagining it in order to make myself feel better, not so lonely. You can tell my thoughts kept bouncing back and forth. First I believed then I didn’t. All that soon changed.
“I can’t. I’m sorry to put you through this, but I need you to get through to your mother. She has to open her mind to me. I must warn her.”
“About what? Wait. How do I even know you’re my father? I’m probably going crazy.”
“You’re not crazy. I am your father. Ask me anything…ask me something only I would know.”
“I thought for a few minutes and remembered a time when I was ten years old at the Grand Canyon. I was afraid to get too close to the edge. Dad, sensing my fear, held me close and whispered in my ear something that took my fear away.
“Fine. What was it you said to me at the Grand Canyon?”
“I whispered in your ear that I had your hand and would never let go, not now, not ever.”
“He takes my hand then and my heart aches, wanting him back. Really back. I grabbed my hand away from his. Tears welled in my eyes at the memory of that trip to the Grand Canyon.
“You’re in my head. You said so yourself. That’s how you know it. I remembered it.”
“No. I know it because I said it. I’ll tell you something then that happened when you were very small.”
“What?” I demanded.
“When you were two, you were running one day in the house. Your mother and I couldn’t contain your enthusiasm once you started to walk. You were all over the place. On one particular day, you were scampering down the hallway. You lost your balance for some reason and slid into the small table by the front door. There was a vase sitting on it holding fresh. The vase fell on your forehead and cut you across the left eyebrow. You have a scar. It’s barely visible, but it’s there.”
“I was quiet for a moment. I knew I had a scar there and I knew how I got it. My parents told me the story.
“Go to the mirror and look for the scar.”
“I moved to my dresser mirror and stared at my eyebrow. I knew it was there. I didn’t need to see it again, but I looked anyway. I ran my finger over it as if to erase it along with my father’s voice.
“That’s when I blacked out.”
Bio:  
     A paralegal by day, I’m an author by night. Apart from being an award winning author for my short story “Cut,” it’s been said that I’ve made my mark on the literary world with my Other Side series.
     Having studied and obtained my Bachelor’s Degree in Literature/Creative Writing, I found my unique style and have been known for my works’ distinctive voice, making every character stand out.
      I’m the founder and owner of Editing by Starr Reina. I’m also the former executive editor for Suspense Magazine and have been a co-host on Suspense Radio. I’ve been interviewed in the newspaper and on the radio with relation to my fiction work.  
      I’m a member of International Thriller Writers (ITW) and of Sisters in Crime, Los Angeles Chapter and nationally. I have won three Best Speaker awards as well as Best Evaluator at the Voice Ambassadors chapter of Toastmasters. I’ve always been active in events. As co-chair and main coordinator for the West Coast Author Premiere, I arranged weekend-long events to help authors from all over network, learn and share their work with the public. I have also been instrumental in compiling authors and planning a local author event at Barnes and Noble in Ventura , California along with the store’s event manager.
 
Please see more about Starr at her editing service at www.editing.queenwriter.com, read more about her at www.QueenWriter.com, and/or visit her blog at www.qw-blog.blogspot.com.
Buy links:
Connect with Starr here:
             Book Trailer
 

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Filed under Romance, Romance Books

A visit from Author Isla Grey

Today I’m please to have Wild Rose Press Author ISLA GREY visiting with me.  The first time I heard her lovely name, I wanted to know more about her. From her website I found out she’s like me in that she loves a good story and has been writing for almost as long as she can remember. And – also like me – she’s a pen and post-it hoarder!

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Isla Grey hails from Central Virginia and still lives in the same small town she grew up in. She developed a love of writing at an early age and over the years has tried her hand at penning poetry (some good, some not so good), screenwriting, newspaper articles and historical stories. She’s “old school” when it comes to writing and is a hoarder of more pens, post-it notes and writing journals than she’ll ever need. Isla likes to write different types of stories from romance to mystery and anything in between and loves a “happy for now but there could be some bad things coming” feel. When Isla’s not writing, she spends her time being called “Mom, Mama, Mommy” (well, you get the picture) by her daughter who is forever active, even in her sleep. She considers herself an unofficial “cat whisperer” and is a pet human to a plethora of cats that have taken up residence at her home over the years. Isla also enjoys reading a good biography or ghost story, traveling even though “there’s no place like home”, good music played loud and walking.

Isla loves movies and is the movie mistakes editor at Bellaonline.com where she talks about…well…movies. Her novella, “A Voice in the Dark”, is available now and her book, “Asylum Harbor”, is also available now through Wild Rose Press.

Here’s the blurb and a little taste from this exciting new novel:

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Blurb

Trouble is the last thing Devon Brown needs when she leaves the painful memories of her past behind and heads to Shell Island. As the Salty Dog’s new bartender, she finds herself drawn to Kerr, the Shell Island harbormaster. But finding her happily-ever-after is difficult when dealing with an obnoxious bootlegger who supplies the bar with illegal liquor and a jealous coworker.

A standoffish loner with damaged emotions, Kerr avoids relationships like the plague. Things change when Devon catches his eye. As a simple flirtation grows serious, the coworker and bootlegger quickly become obstacles to any future Kerr and Devon may have together. As the situation worsens, Devon realizes that even the still waters of Asylum Harbor are no refuge during a storm.

Excerpt:

        “You already got dibs on this one Kerr?”

         Porter shot an evil glare at the opposite end of the bar and looked back toward her. “I’ll see you tonight.” He flicked his tongue. “After work.” He raised his glass in a mock toast and chugged it in one gulp.

         The lights dimmed for Victoria’s dance of the night. Devon watched Kerr, who was usually headed for the exit by now, and breathed a sigh of relief when he remained glued to his seat with his back to the stage. He wasn’t staying for Victoria’s peep show. There must have been something about this Porter character that got under his skin in a bad way.

         Devon was eager for the quick break. She hustled to the back as the chords to “Simply Irresistible” began to pelt over the speakers and ran some cold water over her forearm. A red welt was beginning to show where Porter had held onto it. She hoped he would be gone by the time she got back.

       Making it out before mid-song, Devon rounded the bar when someone snagged her wrist and thrust her hard against the bar, knocking the wind out of her. She could smell Porter’s alcohol-laced breath as his weight pinned her under him. One of his grubby hands shot under her shirt while the other wrestled with the button on her pants. “Let’s give them a real show.”

         She struggled to reach the Equalizer, but it remained hidden, out of her grasp. Devon hoisted her knee toward his crotch, but Porter lost his balance and fell backward before she could make contact.

         Kerr towered over him. “Get your hands off her.”

You can connect with Isla at:

Website: http://www.islagrey.com/

Blog: http://www.islagrey.com/islas-inklings

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorIslaGrey

Twitter: https://twitter.com/IslaGrey1

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/islagrey

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00MMTEYEK

Book Trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDfqmyddcQ4

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Filed under love, Romance, Romance Books

Hungry for something spicy and new?

MFRW BOOK HOOKS BLOG HOP is today!!!

click on the link at the bottom and discover your next favorite author! But first…..

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here’s a little sumthin’ sumthin’ from my new release, FIRST IMPRESSIONS. Padric Cleary is hungry and not just for food!

“Clarissa,” he whispered, his nose nuzzling along the outer edge of her jaw.

“Y-yes?”

His lips skimmed her throat, trailing lazily along the column of her blouse. He placed an open-mouthed, wet kiss along the skin beneath her ear, and she finally let out the breath she’d been holding, fearful she would faint dead away if she didn’t.

“I smell turkey,” he said softly, and took her ear lobe into his mouth.

As he gently sucked on it, Clarissa felt a punch of lust straight through her midsection. “Wh-what?” She gasped when his tongue slid against her throat.

“And biscuits.”

“Biscuits?” Confusion vied with a hunger that had nothing to do with food.

“Mmmm. Turkey and biscuits.” He licked her collarbone and then sucked at the skin covering it.

Oh, sweet Jesus.”

With a smile dancing on his lips, he pulled back and looked at her face. “Clarissa, I’m starving.”

She blinked a few times.

“You wouldn’t, by any chance, want to share your dinner with me, would you? Friend.”

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Blurb:
Family Practice Doctor Clarissa Rogers’ first impression of Padric Cleary is biased and based on gossip. The handsome, charming veterinarian is considered a serial dater and commitment-phobic by his family and most of the town. Relationship shy, Clarissa refuses to lose her heart to a man who can’t pledge himself to her forever.

Pat Cleary, despite his reputation, is actually looking for “The One.” When he does give his heart away, he wants it to be for life. With his parent’s marriage as his guidebook, he wants a woman who will be his equal and soul mate in every way. 
 
Can Pat convince everyone – including Clarissa – she’s the only woman for him?

Buy Links:

Amazon     The Wild Rose Press     Barnes & Noble

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Tweet me     Pin me     Friend me    Read me     Visit me

 

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Filed under Alpha Male, Author, Contemporary Romance, Family Saga, First Impressions, Friends, Romance, Strong Women

An homage to Lizzy Bennett….

It’s no secret Pride and Prejudice is my all time favorite romance novel. I’ve written ad nauseam about my love for it. Gone with The Wind comes close, but I always view that book more of a love tragedy than a triumph. One of the reasons P&P is so near and dear to my heart is its heroine, the feisty, intelligent, loyal Elizabeth Bennett. I put her right up there with Xena. Lizzy may not have been a warrior princess, defending land and country with a spear and a wicked drop kick, but she is certainly – in my humble opinion – a kick-ass romance chickita.

I recently read a very good piece titled 9 Reason’s we will always love Elizabeth Bennett. These include:

  • She never received a formal education, but made sure to educate herself.
  • She was confident and sure of herself, and even someone as imposing as Mr. Darcy couldn’t intimidate her.
  • She always put her family first
  • And would definitely have nothing to do with a man who dared to insult them.
  • She wouldn’t accept a partner for reasons less than love…
  • An ideal she stuck to, in spite of the fact that marrying Collins would have given her financial security, something no woman in her time could get on her own.
  • She understood the importance of kindness over money and a harp tongue
  • She never, ever took advantage of Mr. Darcy’s feelings for her
  • And she always, always spoke her mind.

To sum all that up, Lizzy didn’t take anyone’s crap, be it from the snivelingly Mr Collins, who could make her family’s future miserable, or from the snotty Lady Catherine de’Bourge, a high born woman of power and influence. She stayed true to herself as a woman and as a person,  believed love conquered all, and that marriage should be for love and nothing else.

See? Kick-Ass romance chickita!

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Filed under Author, Contemporary Romance, Family Saga, female friends, Friends, Literary characters, Romance, Romance Books, Strong Women

My Sexy Saturday109 – GirlfriendsRUs

This week’s theme: My Sexy Girlfriend

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This is our nod to all the sexy girlfriends out there. We know all about a sexy girlfriend and how their lover feels about them. There are the hidden looks, the longing gaze, the love shining in their eyes and all the things that come with love. The girlfriends can in all shapes and sizes because sexy has no bounds.  We love sexy and it’s always so fun to share.

Sexy can be anything, such as romantic moments like walks on the beach, a home cooked meal or even in another galaxy. It could be two lovers here on Earth dreaming about the day where they go on a magical vacation to another planet. Or staying right here at one of those wonderful places we can find in our own world.

Sexy has nothing to do with looks or status or even wealth. It doesn’t demand perfection and it isn’t pretentious but it does make us want to read those books.

We know that everyone has their own idea of sexy and we all love sexy!

This scene is from my new release FIRST IMPRESSIONS.

“Did you know about this?” Clarissa asked, her brown eyes moist as they peered up at him.

He nodded. “Moira and I talked about it at Alaina’s christening. I know you were shocked when we came through the door and saw everyone, but we really wanted you to have a party, Clarissa, and a surprise seemed fitting. I hope you’re okay with it.”

She squeezed his arm as shiny tears pooled in the outer corners of her eyes. Before he could say another word, she laid a hand across his cheek, and, with what he knew were several pair of inquiring, nosey eyes watching them, kissed him softly on the lips.

Somewhere behind them he heard his mother sigh.

“It’s the nicest, sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me,” she said. “Thank you.”

He wanted to tell her there would be a lifetime of parties from now on, since he was never going to let her go. She never had to worry again about being alone on her birthday, or any other day. The notion he wanted her with him, in his life, forever, shook him to his very core. But it wasn’t unease he felt. It was absolute joy.

With another nod, he said, “Okay then, let’s go have a party.”

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My Sexy Saturday Blog hop. Click on and find some Sexy new authors.

Buy links:

Amazon:    Wild Rose Press   Barnes & Noble

Tweet me     Read me    Pin me    Find me 

 

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Filed under Alpha Male, Author, Characters, Contemporary Romance, First Impressions, love, MacQuire Women, Romance, Romance Books, Strong Women

Where would you like to go?

As a writer, I can put my characters anywhere in the world I’d like to see them. I can take them to exotic tropical locales, heart-stopping mountainsides, even underwater to a coral reef. Of course, I can also leave them at home and just have them wish  and pine to be taken elsewhere.Hawaii-maui

One of the underlying themes in all my books is that there really is – as Dorothy asserted – no place like home. We’re comfortable there; it’s familiar; for most of us, safe. Home is where that proverbial heart is and many characters never leave the comfy confines of the places they grew up in. Some of the best stories I’ve ever read concern characters who were born, lived and died in the same place. And they were happy. I love to write coming-home stories because I feel as Dorothy did. Surrounded by the people who love you best, homecoming stories have a special place in my heart.

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But isn’t it kind of great to have wanderlust? To dream about being shipwrecked on a tropical island, or snowbound on a majestic mountainside? Of course, since I write romance stories, it would have to be the hero and heroine who are snowbound and shipwrecked, because, where’s the fun if it’s just one character? Unfamiliar territory brings with it all sorts of plot lines, character growth and development, and of course the ability to bring two people together who might never have met otherwise. Agatha Christie was famous for taking her characters and dropping them all over the world.

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Let your imagination take you – and your characters  – anywhere they want to go.

 

 

 

 

 

What if your H/H were running from  a band of thieves in a Moroccan souk?

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Or trying to escape from a group of militant terrorists in the African jungle?

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You have the power to put your characters anywhere you want them to be, whether it’s in a small town in the middle of America or the largest city in the world. Like your kids, they go where you take them. And like your kids they complain, moan about almost everything, but ultimately come to the conclusion that the trip was worthwhile and fun.

So, where in the world have your characters gone? Let’s discuss….

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How does your heroine smell?

A while back I did a blog titled How does your hero smell? It was a light-hearted, but serious-intended piece about using your sense of smell as writer. Today, the tables are being metaphorically turned onto your heroine. So, for lack of a better title, How does your heroine smell?

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Girls are supposed to smell, well, like girls. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a female character referred to as smelling “manly” in a book…not in any I’ve read, anyway. But aside from describing to your reader how your protagonist smells like the inside of an exotic flowering hothouse, or dousing her in buckets of eau d’parfume, what sensory motivators can you use?

We’ve all heard the line sugar and spice and everything nice; that’s what little girls are made of. Well, what about big girls? I kind of think the same thing applies.smell3

Let me ‘splain it you, Lucy.

What does sugar really smell like? Well, we know it tastes sweet, so that colors what our sense of smell tells us it’s like. What, aside from sugar, is sweet? A few things come to mind for me: chocolate, vanilla, cherries, apples. You get the idea. Maybe your heroine smells like warm vanilla pudding, or caramels melting over ripe apples. She sounds good enough to eat, right? And if she does to us, she does to the hero, too (don’t even go there! This is a G-rated blog).

So what spices come to mind when you hear the above saying? When I think of spices I think of tangy, potent ones like cinnamon and nutmeg, citrus and lemongrass. Stuff that I recognize when it hits my tastebuds. Spicy can also be hot, like peppers – although I’d rather name a character Pepper than describe her as smelling like one. Maybe it’s just me, but if I read a character described as smelling like a chili pepper, I’d first think she worked in a Mexican restaurant and I’d have an immediate vision of her that might not be anything like the author wanted. Although now that I think that through….hummmmm.

Back to smells.

The end of the saying tells us girls smell like everything nice. Well, what smells nice to you may not smell nice to me. For instance, I love the smell of coffee brewing, but wouldn’t want to go around smelling like an urn all day. There’s a commercial out right now for – I think, Honey Bunches of Oats – where the line worker goes shopping after working all day at the cereal plant and she says people around her sniff and say they smell cookies. She tells them, “nah, that’s me. I just came from work. You’re just smelling Honey Bunches of Oats.” Now, I don’t think I want to smell like cereal, but you certainly remember the commercial, and therefore the product, so somebody wrote something good there! What smells nice to you? Cotton sheets that have been line-dried smell nice; lemonaid smells nice. Lots of things do.

The lesson learned here is that men and women smell very differently and when we write sensory descriptions, we really need to keep sex ( read: Gender) in mind. I wouldn’t want to write my hero as smelling like a full blooming hothouse jasmine flower laced with sin, but I would describe my heroine that way. Only better, because that line is a little cheesy… and very poorly written. But you get the idea.

So, how do your heroines smell? Let’s discuss…

'I like a boy in my class. Do you have anything that smells like peanut butter?'

‘I like a boy in my class. Do you have anything that smells like peanut butter?’

 

 

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Filed under Author, Contemporary Romance, Romance, Strong Women

10 things I should have said better…if I’d only stopped to think first

I love lists and top 10 lists – like Letterman’s – are my favorites. Here are the things my impulse control issues could have done without giving a voice to:

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  1. That’s not really your natural hair color, is it?
  2. You can’t raise someone else’s kids, but someone should volunteer to raise yours.
  3. Nosey, much?
  4. When was the actual last time you washed your hair?
  5. That color does nothing for you sallow complexion.
  6. Oh yeah… a diet that includes French fries and beer and you can’t figure out why you can’t lose weight? Really?
  7. Stupid, much?
  8. The last time I looked, stupid and ignorant weren’t things to be proud of.
  9. Did I just say that out loud? Shit.
  10. ….and the absolute worst thing I ever said to someone: You went to an actual school to learn how to do that? Really? They pay someone to teach that?

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I’ll leave it to your imaginations to figure out what I was referring to. ( LOL)

Ever say something you wish you’d said in a nicer, better way? Let’s discuss….

 

 

 

 

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Filed under Author, Contemporary Romance, Life challenges, Romance, Strong Women

Dream a dream…wish a wish….

I receive a GOODREADS email/update almost every day – for which I am thankful. I lovelovelove Goodreads. One thing I’ve noticed in my notifications ( too much alliteration, there?) are the reader updates. A listing of what people I follow or my “friends” are currently reading.  If you have a KINDLE, the device – or I guess Amazon, really, plugs you into Goodreads when you start and finish the book so you can update your progress. I do this too, I list the book I’m into at the moment, and then mark it when I’m done as “read.” I always rate it, sometimes review it.

Yesterday, I received an email update with what 74 of my friends are reading. Goodreads lists the person’s name, along with book title and cover. Of those 74 updates ( and there were 531 books being read or added to my friend’s lists) I didn’t see mine, once. I realized, at that moment, how much it would really mean to me as an author to see my book cover and title plastered onto someone’s Currently Reading or Read column.

Conceited, much??

Nah, just a hopeful author looking for readers who like my work. So, if you’re on Goodreads and you’ve read one of my books……….

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Filed under Author, Contemporary Romance, love, MacQuire Women, Romance, Skater's Waltz, Strong Women, There's No Place Like Home