Tag Archives: books

Public speaking isn’t for sissies…

So, this weekend I’ll be here:

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I’m part of the Vendor’s event on Friday night,  hawking my books and pressing the flesh ( why that always sounds so dirty to me, I can’t tell ya, but it does! )

Saturday I’m giving two “talks” or classes, as the camp is calling them. One is titled DREAM BIG the other, WRITING A BOOK, two concepts I know a great deal about.

Anyone who knows me knows I love to talk. I’ll talk to practically anyone, anywhere any time. My grandmother used to say I’d talk to a rock if it would listen. She’s wasn’t wrong.

But speaking to another person one-on-one or in a small group of your friends is totally different from getting up in front of a bunch of strangers and commanding a topic.

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I tend to babble when I’m nervous. I tend to go off on tangents if something strikes me as funny. I tend to avoid eye contact because I’m so nervous. None of these little idiosyncrasies warms a listener’s heart when they have paid cash-money to hear you speak about a topic you are supposed to be proficient in and an expert on.

There are a million tactics to dealing with this nervous anxiety. Picturing your audience naked is one of the oldest and most quoted pieces of advice. But folks, seriously? I’m a romance writer. I write about naked people all the time! If I started envisioning my audience naked I’d most likely start to think up stories to put couples in the crowd together! Not a good tactic at all.

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Someone else offered me the advice of speaking to the crowd as if they were all a bunch of my friends and we were just chatting. Again- do you know me??? I have more “friends” on facebook than I do in real life. I’m never around more than 4 people at a time. EVAH!!!

One thing I did do for these two talks was write out all the bullet points I wanted to speak about and then transferred them to index cards. At least this way I can stick to topic and not go off on one of my numerous side trips and a non-sensical conversations.

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Arghghgh, as Charlie Brown so correctly says.

What have I gotten myself into? It’s so hard being a 50-ish, chubby, nervous, introvert in today’s youth obsessed, anorexic, let-everything-hang-out-there world.

I think I’ll go back to writing now to calm myself.

When I’m not having anxiety attacks about public speaking you can find me here:

Tweet Me//Read Me// Visit Me// Picture Me//Pin Me//Friend Me//Google+Me//

 

 

 

 

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Filed under Author, community advocacy, Contemporary Romance, female friends, Kensington Publishers, Life challenges, Literary characters, Lyrical Author, Pet Peeves, Romance, Romance Books, Strong Women, Uncategorized, WIld Rose Press AUthor

#RWA16..day 1, fo’real!

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Day 1 fangirl sightings: Jayne Ann Krentz, Nalini Singh, Kristan Higgins, Shirly Jump,  Catherine ByBee, Barbara Wallace., Robyn Carr, and Jill Shalvis. This was all before the Literacy signing!!!

Day 1 goodies and Swag: 18 books, 2 beach towels, 4 canvas bags, a selfie stick, a BPA water bottle, various notebooks, pens, candy.

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Day 1 OMG Moment? This:
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So, I’m going to go get dressed and prettyfied for the book signing. Please, Jesus, let someone buy a book!!!! More about that later….

While I’m in San Diego, here’s where you can reach me:  Tweet Me// Read Me//Visit Me// Picture Me//Pin Me//Friend Me//Google+Me//

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Off to my version of the Wonderful World of Oz…RWA2016!

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In just a few days, I leave for San Diego for the 2016 RWA annual conference. Can I tell you just how excited I am?! I’m like a kid waiting anxiously for Christmas morning. I’m like that 18-year-old waiting for the college acceptance letter to come via snail mail. I’m like that bride-to-be the night before her big day. I’m like….okay, you get it!

This will be my third RWA conference. The first one I ever attended was in 2014 and that conference shaped my life to come. Dramatic much, you ask? No, not really. I’ll tell you why.

At the RWA14 conference held in San Antonio 2 amazing things happened that turned my life as I knew it then, completely around. First, I met the person who would become my first editor at The Wild Rose Press. I had submitted my manuscript Skater’s Waltz to WRP after winning a contest. Rhonda Penders was the judge and she asked me to submit. I had been exchanging emails with this editor for the champagne line for a few weeks, and she told me she would be at the conference and would like to meet up, so we arranged a time to do so. When we met she told me that  by the time I got home from the conference there would be an acceptance letter in the mail from WRP for my book, along with a contract. I was so stunned I couldn’t put a coherent sentence together. A legitimate publisher was going to put my book into print! Momentous event number 1.

Life changing event number 2 was when I met, talked with, and cried to Nora Roberts. Oh, and got a picture with her, which currently sits on my writing desk. Why did I cry, you ask? It was NORA ROBERTS!!!! And she was so damn normal and nice. We spoke for a few minutes ( well, I babbled between sob sniffs!) and she encouraged me wholeheartedly to go all balls out for my dream of writing and publishing romantic fiction.  She said no one could write the romance story I wanted to tell but me. Me! Holy Macaroni!

Holy Macaroni!

She said she knew she’d be seeing my at the Literacy Book signing someday, at my own table.

I left that conference with enough enthusiasm and good will to last until the RWA15 conference. At that one, I volunteered to work at the Literacy Book-Signing and was assigned to Jayne Ann Krentz! No crying this  time, but she was amazing. I learned an awful lot about being a gracious and  receptive author from her.

This year, RWA16, I’m volunteering at the Librarian’s luncheon and moderating 2 courses with some of my fav authors. Oh, and I’m doing the Literacy Book signing this year as …drumroll…. a SIGNING AUTHOR. God bless Nora Roberts’ prediction.

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So, if you’re in San Diego this year, join us for the Book signing. If you’re a first time RWA conference attendee, whether you’re an author or a reader, be sure to look for me around the Marriot and in classes and stop and say Hi!

And remember: dreams come true every day, in every way. You just need to dream them.

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Writing Relationships…

During your writing career, just as in life, you will forge and develop many different writing relationships with people who will – hopefully- help you advance. Literary agents, Editors, Publishers, Book Promoters, Publicists, Marketing Analysts, and certainly not the least, Readers. All of these people are important to you, but in my opinion, one of the most important connections you will make is with your Editor.

My editor was instrumental in getting my first book published. She supported me, guided me, and encouraged me through the –at times – very daunting process of having a debut novel go to press. She was the voice of reason when I questioned “why” and the sounding board when I asked, “how come.” Together, she helped me give publishing birth to five works ( 4 books and 1 novella). During that time she wasn’t only my editor, but she became my friend. One I will treasure for the rest of my life.

It is a fact of the publishing world that editors come and go from publishing houses. Career advancement, the desire to take a different literary path, or even to have children and take care of  a family means a publisher – and a writer -will lose their favored editor.

This has recently happened to me. The void that is left behind in my heart is cavernous. This person was my very first professional editor. She was the person who saw something in my writing, who went to bat for me and basically helped make my dream of becoming a published author come true. With patience, professionalism, and kindness she guided me through that first thrilling but harrowing publishing experience, and she has been there championing me and directing my steps every inch of the way. She was the one I could turn to when a scene was not playing out the way I wanted it to. She was the one who showed me the light when the creative bulbs dimmed and I was stuck in POV nightmares. It was to her eyes I looked when something just didn’t sound as good on the page as it did in my head. In my professional writing career, I liken her to my fairy godmother. She, quite completely, made my wishes come true. I will miss my editor as I would miss a child who has left for college or a friend who moves far away.

The editor I am assigned to now is just as professional and kind. My relationship with my publisher is a wonderful, solid partnership and I look forward to many more professional collaborations between myself and my new editor.

But there is something about your first…..

My debut novel, SKATER’S WALTZ ,wouldn’t have come about if not for my editor. If you’re interested in seeing what a professional editing job she did, here’s the 411.

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.

perf5.000x8.000.inddFor all his wanderlust and hunger for professional success, Cole Greer returns to New York 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.

Available here:

Amazon //  Wild Rose Press //  B&N

If you need to find me, you can:  Tweet Me// Read Me// Visit Me// Picture Me//Pin Me//Friend Me//Google+Me//

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Filed under Author, Characters, Contemporary Romance, Editors, Family Saga, love, MacQuire Women, Romance, Romance Books, RWA, Skater's Waltz, Strong Women, The Wild Rose Press, Uncategorized, WIld Rose Press AUthor

Words….

Everyone who knows me knows I lovelovelove words. My favorite Christmas present when I was a kid? A dictionary. When I’m writing, that old tried and true tome is never far from my side. I know it’s easier to look things up in an on-line dictionary, but in this one case, I am a purist.

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Words give meaning and purpose to my life. When I come up with a dynamite sentence filled with words that just sing to me – one that even I sit back and say “Well done” to – I am in word-writing nirvana.

I think my first favorite word ever came to me when I was 5 years old.   Motivation.

The reason motivation was my first favorite word was because it was the theme in my very first favorite book The Little Engine that Could. That little train was so determined to get up and over the mountain he let nothing stop him. I realize he was self-motivated, but to me it’s the same thing!engine

Skip ahead a few years and I’m now 11 and reading Pride and Prejudice for the first of 45 times – and that’s a true statement. I’ve read it every year since I was 11 so that makes me….you figure it out. Anyway, the next favorite word was: Universally, as in “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.” Love that word because it is all–encompassing. When you read the word you feel a sense of commonality and connection with, well, everyone else! It’s…universal.

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The teenage years brought with it new aspects of favorite words – many of them body parts and therefore unmentionable here – but two of my all time favorites were individualistic and oxymoron. Oxymoron, meaning contradictory terms appearing in conjunction, and Individualistic as in independent and self-reliant. As a writer, these two words spawn so many wonderful plot lines and character traits. Jumbo shrimp, clearly misunderstood, deafening silence, dull roar, small crowd. These are some of my favorite oxymorons. And the best part? Most people say them and don’t even realize what they are saying. Love that!

A few decades later and my favorite words are now mother and love. The mother one is easy: I became one and there has been no greater joy in my life. The Love one is also relatively easy: I write contemporary romance. The end product of every romance is a happily ever after ending with LOVE as its dominant force. So, DUH!  Of course it’s my fav.

Any words you particularly like or use often? Come on… share. I love learning new words.

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And if you’re looking for some new words to read, here’s a book filled with good ones!
THE VOICES OF ANGELS

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Love is the last thing Carly Lennox is looking for when she sets out on her new book tour. The independent, widowed author is content with a life spent writing and in raising her daughter. When newscaster Mike Woodard suggests they work on a television magazine profile based on her book, Carly’s thrilled, but guarded. His obvious desire to turn their relationship into something other than just a working one is more than she bargained for.

Mike Woodard is ambitious, and not only in his chosen profession. He wants Carly, maybe more than he’s ever wanted anything or anyone else. As he tells her, he’s a patient man. But the more they’re together, Mike realizes it isn’t simply desire beating within him. Carly Lennox is the missing piece in his life. Getting her to accept it-and him-may just be the toughest assignment he’s ever taken on.

Buy Links: Amazon /// TWRP /// Kobo /// Nook

If you need to find me, you can:  Tweet Me// Read Me// Visit Me// Picture Me//Pin Me//Friend Me//Google+Me//

 

 

 

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Filed under Author, Contemporary Romance, Dialogue, Life challenges, Literary characters, love, MacQuire Women, Romance, Romance Books, Strong Women, The Voices of Angels, The Wild Rose Press, WIld Rose Press AUthor

Summertime, goals, and reading lists…

It’s hard to believe summer is almost officially here. Especially where I live, because it’s still so damn cold most nights.

Anyway, Memorial Day is commonly seen as the unofficial start of summer and since it’s this weekend, I thought it was time to get my summer lists ready.

What are my summer lists, you ask? Well, I’m so glad you did. Back in the day when I was still in school ( or as my daughter calls my time in higher learning – the olden times!) I was given a summer reading list every May, instructed to finish the books listed by the time school started up in the fall, and to write 2-3 book reports about the books I’d read.

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Now, an enterprising person would see this, think I needed to read only 2-3 books because I only had to hand in that amount of reports. You would be so wrong. We needed to complete all the books because we were tested on a sample of them when we were back in class and we never knew which books were going to be chosen. So, you see, they all had to be dealt with.

I am no longer in school – although I’d debate that just living day to day and dealing with people some days feels like I’m still in middle school and surrounded by drama – but I still have a summer reading list I make every year for my own personal growth and enjoyment.

I typically fill the list with a wide variety of books from autobiographies, to writing handbooks, to fiction novels I’ve been dying to read and couldn’t find the time for, even  a few technical books when I want to learn something new.

Last summer I had a list of 25 books and managed to complete 23.  Not bad.

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This year, because I am on a writing deadline for a new series of books, I’ve pared my list down to just 15. That seems do-able to me. Now this list doesn’t include the books I’ve preordered that I want to read by my favorite authors. I slip those in because publication times sometimes overlap or go longer, and I need to read my favs as soon as they come out.

I know: a little obsessive, but hey. That’s me.

So, what are you going to be reading this summer? ( Hopefully, something by me!!) Need ideas? here’s my newest to add to your list:

THE VOICES OF ANGELS

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Love is the last thing Carly Lennox is looking for when she sets out on her new book tour. The independent, widowed author is content with a life spent writing and in raising her daughter. When newscaster Mike Woodard suggests they work on a television magazine profile based on her book, Carly’s thrilled, but guarded. His obvious desire to turn their relationship into something other than just a working one is more than she bargained for.

Mike Woodard is ambitious, and not only in his chosen profession. He wants Carly, maybe more than he’s ever wanted anything or anyone else. As he tells her, he’s a patient man. But the more they’re together, Mike realizes it isn’t simply desire beating within him. Carly Lennox is the missing piece in his life. Getting her to accept it-and him-may just be the toughest assignment he’s ever taken on.

Buy Links: Amazon /// TWRP /// Kobo /// Nook

If you need to find me, you can:  Tweet Me// Read Me// Visit Me// Picture Me//Pin Me//Friend Me//Google+Me//

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Filed under Alpha Male, Author, Characters, Contemporary Romance, Life challenges, Literary characters, love, MacQuire Women, Romance, Romance Books, Strong Women, The Voices of Angels, The Wild Rose Press, WIld Rose Press AUthor

Today’s Candy Heart releases…

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Meet our next Candy Heart Authors Brenda Gayle, Darcy Lundeen, and Marie  Tuhart and their additions to the growing series, ME+YOU and ADORE ME and MELT MY HEARTAnd don’t forget to click on the link below for a chance to win a KINDLE FIRE.

                             Me + You  (Brenda Gayle)

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Blurb

Teacher Lori Tait has always wanted a family, but now she’s 40, she’s pretty much decided all the good men are taken. Instead, she devotes herself to her students, particularly one little girl whose struggle with math seems inconsistent with an otherwise brilliant and artistic mind.

Mark Wilder hadn’t planned to become a father, but when a fling resulted in his daughter, Grace, he whole-heartedly embraced the role. Raised in a family of boys, what does he know about women and girls? Once he learns of Grace’s inability to comprehend basic math, he welcomes the role of tutor as a way to connect with his daughter; the opportunity to spend time with her sexy teacher is an added bonus.

When Lori cracks the mystery of Grace’s problem Mark’s world is thrown into turmoil; he’s the last person who can help his daughter. He pushes everyone away, confirming Lori’s theory about men. Grace, however, has other plans. Using her new-found understanding of math, she sets out to prove to her father and teacher that, together, they add up to the perfect match.

Excerpt

“The bottom line is I want to have a child and if I wait much longer I will be too old to be accepted into an IVF program.”

“I could give you one of my kids on a rotating basis.” Sharon grinned. “You could take a different one every week. Heck, I’d even throw in Tom for a week, he’s almost as bad as the young ones.”

“I’m serious!”

“I know.” Sharon sobered. “But raising a child isn’t easy, especially if you have to do it on your own. For all I rag on Tom about being a big kid, I couldn’t manage without him.”

“Lots of women do it,” Lori said stubbornly.

“True,” Sharon conceded. She took a sip of her drink and then seriously observed Lori over the rim of her cup. “Okay.” She put the cup down on the table and sat up straighter. “But if you’re determined to have a child, don’t do in vitro. Find some sexy hot stud and, at least, have the fun of doing it the old-fashioned way.”

Lori gagged on a mouthful of mochaccino, trying not to spit it out with laughter. “And where do you think I will find such a specimen?” she asked when she managed to compose herself.

Sharon shrugged. “What about Mr. Tall, Dark, and Yummy?” She pointed over Lori’s shoulder.

Lori swiveled in her chair and found herself staring at the crotch of a poster-sized Mark Wilder exiting one of his famous purple Jeeps. She quickly raised her gaze to the familiar stubbled chin and deep brown eyes, but not before she felt the crimson rush of embarrassment flood her face. He was the only man she’d met recently that looked better than his picture. Take a Trip to the Wild Side with Sedona’s Wilder Jeep Tours, the poster proclaimed.

Yessiree, if she was picking a partner on looks alone, she’d definitely take a trip to the wild side with him.

Buy Links:
The Wild Rose Press    Amazon

Author Bio

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I’ve been a writer all my life but returned to my love of fiction after more than 20 years in the world of corporate communications—although some might argue there is plenty of opportunity for fiction-writing there, too. I have a Master’s degree in journalism and an undergraduate degree in psychology. A fan of many genres, I am drawn to contemporary romance and enjoy creating deeply emotional stories with elements of mystery and suspense.

I live in eastern Ontario with my wonderful husband, two fabulous children, a rescued cat, two Siberian Huskies, and assorted aquatic wildlife.

Find Brenda Here:

Web:   Facebook:   Twitter:    Goodreads:

 

                       Adore Me (Darcy Lundeen)

Blurb:adote me

A hacker is targeting Meredith Crismis’s struggling new dessert company. But when the tech firm she depends on sends hunky computer expert Vlad Wiznitsky to fix the problem, things begin improving for Meredith, both personally and professionally.

First, her relationship with Vlad heats up to the sizzling point, then Meredith’s given the chance to snag a wealthy customer who could put her company’s bottom line permanently into the black. It seems like a dream come true, until the persistent hacker turns her “Divine Desserts” website into an X-rated marketplace, the wealthy customer demands a discontinued decorative item or else no sale, and her relationship with Vlad begins to unravel under the pressure of her obsession with professional success.

For a woman who deals with creating intricate wedding cakes and luscious muffins, life has suddenly become the ultimate recipe for disaster.

Excerpt:

“Do you know how long it’s been this way?” he asked.

“After all the trouble I’ve had with my office computer, I decided to check my company site several times a day. As of four-thirty this afternoon, everything was fine, so it hasn’t been long.” Meredith sighed. Just long enough to turn her business into an X-rated paradise for horny consumers.

“Message just came in for you,” Vlad said, and she stopped pacing and went back to the desk, silently praying it wasn’t like the twenty-seven other messages she’d received in the past fifty-two minutes.

As she leaned over his shoulder, she tapped the message tab, stared at the screen, and couldn’t restrain herself when she read the thing. Angry, frustrated, and seriously at the end of her rope, she gave a growl and stabbed her finger at the message.

“I just got another order, this one for two sets of edible underwear in chocolate mint and two sets in blueberry. That’s twenty-eight orders in less than an hour. I never did this good selling desserts.”

She swung away from the computer and went back to her pacing. “I can’t deal with any more of this today. I’ll contact those people in the morning and return their money.”

“Okay, did it,” Vlad said, pushing his chair away from the desk and turning to her. “You no longer sell X-rated sex toys.”

Meredith sank into a chair. “Thank God. If my parents ever saw that, they’d disown me.”

“Actually, I’m a little sorry to see that site go. Some of those toys looked sort of interesting. I mean what’s not to like about frosted condoms?”

She narrowed her eyes at him, trying to look forbidding even though she was feeling much too relieved to be angry. With Vlad on her side, her sense of helplessness was gone and she could even appreciate the crazy, if sick, humor of the situation.

“Interesting?” she said as she took a handful of rubber bands from a bowl on the desk and tossed them at him. “Now you’re really in for it, buddy.”

Vlad ducked and pushed to his feet, coming at her in a crouch. “I’m in for it? Think again, and then tell me who’s in for it.”

Laughing, Meredith sprang from her chair and ran, but he caught her at the door and swung her into his arms.

“Think you’re going to get what you want, eh?” she said, pushing at his chest.

She kicked her feet, and her shoes went flying. But they both knew her resistance was a sham.

He bounced her a little in his arms to get a firmer hold and began walking.

“I think we’re both going to get what I want,” he said, flashing a victorious grin. “And from the feel of things what you want too.”

Buy Links:

Wild Rose Press    Amazon

About Darcy:

Darcy Lundeen

I was born in a big city and grew up amid pavements, pigeons, and the near-constant clamor of bumper-to-bumper traffic and testy pedestrians. In acknowledging my brick-and-asphalt background, my college roommate, who hailed from a small town filled with lush greenery, once actually said, “When did you see your first real tree and did you know what you were looking at?” She later insisted it was a joke, but since she seemed dead serious at the time, I still have my doubts.

A writer and researcher, who has dealt with subjects as diverse as international organizations, multiple sclerosis, the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, and the Soviet Union (when there still was a Soviet Union), I enjoy taking long walks, visiting the Ancient Egyptian, Ancient Etruscan and dinosaur exhibits in museums, doing sudoku (but only the easy ones) and concocting stories about everyday people who laugh a lot, cry a little and ultimately find the happily-ever-after they deserve.

At the moment, I still live in a big city, but now thanks to the diligence of the local Parks Department, I can always recognize a real tree when I see one.

Find Darcy here: Facebook/  Facebook Author Page/  Twitter/  Website/

 

MELT MY HEART (Marie Tuhart)

Blurb:

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Veterinarian Lexi Mallory wants to submit to the sexy new Dom from the club, but trauma from her past keeps getting in the way. It’s a good thing Gabriel Huntington has a special way with difficult subs and sees the gorgeous Lexi as a delicious challenge. Unfortunately, Lexi fears her inability to relinquish control that will finally test Garbriel’s patience and he’ll end their contract. Can Lexi lower her barriers and allow Gabriel’s touch to melt her heart?

Excerpt:

Gabriel stood. “I’m not going to walk away, Lexi.” He stepped over to her. “I’m in it for the long run.” He gathered her into his arms.

Lexi gazed up at his handsome features. Then he lowered his head. His lips were firm, but gentle. Oh, they’d kissed before, but something was different about this one. His tongue traced her lips before she parted them and his tongue dived in.

Her arms went around his neck, her fingers tangled in his soft hair. He tasted like tea, and she sighed into his mouth. One hand grasped the back of her neck, holding her still as he plundered her mouth, his tongue dueling with hers. He took complete and total control, and it didn’t bother her like she thought it would.

When he broke the kiss, she was hot and her panties moist.

Gabriel gazed down at her with passion in his eyes. “That was just a taste of what I can give you, if you allow it.” He withdrew his arms from around her waist.

“Oh shit,” she whispered, before forcing her hands from his hair. She picked up her purse and fled. Did she just let the tiger out? Or did she willingly walk into the tiger’s cage?

Buy Links:

The Wild Rose Press   Amazon

About Marie Tuhart:

Erotic novel

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Marie  can’t remember a time when she didn’t have a book in her hands. When she isn’t reading or writing, Marie loves to spend time in bookstores and traveling. Marie’s muse is her toy poodle, Penny, who lets Marie know when she’s been working too long.

Fun Facts: Marie has a key chain collection from all the places she’s visited, both US and around the world. Only two have been given to her.

You can find Marie here:

Website:   Facebook   Goodreads Twitter

Pinterest  Sign up for Marie’s newsletter 

Enter THE WILD ROSE PRESS RAFFLECOPTER for a chance to win a KINDLE FIRE. Click on the http://link

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Filed under Candy Hearts, Contemporary Romance, Romance, The Wild Rose Press, Uncategorized, WIld Rose Press AUthor

NaNoWriMo-done-o! 11/30

It’s official: another November has come and gone and along with it NaNoWriMo.

 

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By midnight tonite  hundreds of thousands of writers around the globe who have been participating in what is charmingly called “NaNo Word Wars” will stop typing, lay down their pens, surrender their pencils and hit Save, then Submit  and verify into the NaNo site to confirm they have at least written 50,000 words of a work in progress.

So, if you participated where did you wind up today? 50,000 words? More? Less? Were you able to write every day, at least a few words, or did you fall into plot holes, POV problems, or just plain writing inertia somewhere along the way? Or did your everyday life and the responsibilities and obligations that go along with it get in the way of your writing? Don’t be upset if you didn’t make the mark for whatever reason. The fact you tried and got something down makes you a winner in my book.

50,000 words is a lot. A. Lot. Figuring that most romance novels fall between 65,000 and 90,000, 50 K could be considered almost done with your next novel.  And novellas can top off between 25 and 35,000.

I made my goal during the third week because I was on a role and have no other life but writing. No kids home to disturb me, and a husband who works 90+ hours per week, leaves me with a great deal of time to do this. And luckily, the book I was working on is the fifth in a series so I knew my characters and where I wanted to take them fairly well. Plus, I’m a plotter. Enough said.

Congratulations on the effort, the success, and the blood, sweat and tears for this year’s challenge. Onward to 2016. It’s only 365 days away!

nanowinnner

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Filed under Author, Contemporary Romance, Family Saga, Life challenges, love, MacQuire Women, NaNoWriMo, Romance Books, WIld Rose Press AUthor