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Archive for 'Guest Blogger'
Monday, August 22nd, 2016
I recently celebrated a significant birthday. However, people seem to think I should now behave like a grown up and be serious, right?
Some have gone so far as to ask: “Why don’t you write a real book for a change?” “Why don’t you write something that matters?”
Translation: Why do you still write romance?
Well, hello!
I believe romance readers want love stories because they are believers in the power of love to reshape their lives in miraculous ways.
In today’s world with so many ethnic groups taught to hate and with so many public figures encouraging hate along with an us-versus-them mentality, the need to express love for others and to be kind is more important than ever. I try to take every opportunity to celebrate my favorite forms of love: weddings and babies. There is always such hope and love with those events, and they only get better when there’s a cowboy involved!
Since I’m from Texas, it may be only natural that the two series I’m currently publishing are about cowboys! And, of course about the women they love and their babies, and weddings too! These novels celebrate all love from the tender caresses of a baby, to romantic wedding celebrations that include extended family and community, to the steamy, passionate nights under the wild Texas moon.
My latest series is called Lone Star Dynasty, and it focuses on the wealthy and powerful Starks, with their legendary ranch, and their loves and triumphs over challenges in South Texas.
To introduce the series, Book 1, Love With An Imperfect Cowboy is on sale for $1.99 (regular price $3.99) from August 24 until September 1.
She’s a runaway bride looking for love in all the wrong places
Desperate to escape her cheating bridegroom, Hannah Lewis heads to the one place nobody will ever think to look for her–Texas, where she’d planned to go on her honeymoon.
An Impossible Attraction
Grieving widower, rancher Liam Stark knows better than to get involved with the big-eyed, naïve-looking dazzler who walks into his bar lost and alone casting haunted glances his way, practically begging him to kiss her. When she puts herself in harm’s way, he saves her. He doesn’t do love, but maybe he can give her what she wants… if for one night only.
Get your copy and follow Liam and Hannah’s story as they explore the possibility of finding love where they least expect it:
iBook | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo
The second series I’m currently publishing is my Texas: Children of Destiny series, which was written a while back, but revised and republished in ebook format. This series is set in Texas and across the globe as members of the powerful Jackson family loved and lost but are given a second chance. Will they take advantage of their opportunity to win love back or will their pride force them to risk it all?
Best of all, as a gift to my fans and an incentive to new readers, Passion’s Child (Book 1) is free.
Passion’s Child is the story of an estranged, married couple, who meet again when their beloved son’s life is threatened. When Nick tries to claim his wife and child, they discover that their passion for each other still burns as hotly as ever, despite Amy’s terrible secret.
Is it too late for them? Will his sins and her secrets destroy their second chance at love? Or can love triumph over all?
Order your copies of Ann Major’s Texas: Children of Destiny series and discover the terrible secrets kept and the risk they must take to rediscover the power of love.
About the Author
ANN MAJOR lives in Texas with her husband of many years. She has three grown children and several grandchildren. She has a master’s degree from Texas A&M at Kingsville, Texas and is a former English teacher. A founding board member of the Romance Writers of America, she is a frequent speaker at writers’ groups.
Besides her writing, Ann loves to hike in the mountains, sail, kayak, travel, and play the piano. Most of all she enjoys her friends and family, and lastly, but not least, her cat.
Tagged: Guest Blogger, Texas Posted in General | Comments Off on Ann Major: Babies, Weddings, and Cowboys: A Few of My Favorite Things | Link
Friday, August 19th, 2016
Dear Reader,
I have always loved stories with big families where lots of dramatic things happen to them. I am a huge prime time fan, and I can get sucked into an English-translated telenovela fast. I have always wanted to write stories that implemented high drama with larger than life personalities. I’ve been working on the Morgan family for over a year. I had to figure out this family and wondered what could happen next that would keep me surprised and interfere with the characters’ love lives.
First, I had to come up with the family and their background. The major villain in all the stories is the guy who died in chapter one of the first book, Mitch Morgan. He was the patriarch of this family. What could a father do that made all the children happy that he finally died?
The possibilities were endless. Then what happened to the mother of the children? How would adult children in this super billionaire family be if the father was as awful as I realized Mitch was? In the first book, John Morgan had joined the FBI simply to find evidence that might put his father in jail. How would he act when he failed at this mission?
I had to know, and I had to learn who all the Morgans were, and I hope all my readers find this family as fascinating as I do.
Inside the House of Morgan, anything might happen…
Secret Crush: The House of Morgan
For some, joining the FBI is a long-term goal. For billionaire John Morgan, joining the Bureau is a stepping stone to proving his father is culpable for his sister’s death. After his estranged father dies, John is forced to return home and face the ghosts of his past. That proves to be more difficult than he could have ever imagined.
Alice Collins lives a peaceful life. As a farmer’s daughter, she knows what it’s like to work hard for what you want. After losing her best friend under inexplicable circumstances, her world viewpoint shifted until her small town sensibilities convinced her to attend Mr. Morgan’s funeral.
Soon, the past and the present collide, and Alice is caught in the crosshairs. John comes to her aid, complicating matters for both of them.
Can a handsome billionaire on a vendetta truly fall for a small town girl, or does he have something else in mind? Can a small town girl, if she gives her heart to him, ever fit into the House of Morgan?
Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/HfCdG_xtlfY
Pre-Order Here:
https://amzn.to/2aIojRn
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1124368213;jsessionid=5E7ACAEC7E89E02B4910DD5D78F6659F.prodny_store01-atgap10?ean=2940153343761
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1144255112
https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/secret-crush-6
Excerpt
John leaned against the wall and let the throngs of people pass.
Alice followed suit, standing next to him as she sipped her wine. “I assumed he was taking over. Did you want that job?”
John’s entire body jumped as if she’d slapped him. “Hell, no.”
She gulped her sip fast. She kept saying the wrong thing. Inside his blue eyes was a kaleidoscope of emotion. Alice remembered that he used to be kind. She rubbed her lips together. “Then who cares?”
He drank his wine and scanned the room. After making the rounds with his gaze, he took in her entire figure with an intensity that made her knees weak. “What is it you do, Alice?”
“Collins Organic Farm.” She brushed her brown bob behind her ear. “I work for my family. What is it you do?”
Again, his blue eyes flashed as if lightning was in his stare.
She watched him, hypnotized.
“I work in real estate.”
“Liar.” She tilted her head. He definitely didn’t work in real estate. She crossed her arms around her chest. Without another word, she waited for the fallout of her remark.
His eyebrows quirked in shock. Then his dimples appeared. “What do you think I do?”
She met his smile with her own. “Professional bad boy and poker player. It’s what I always thought.”
He chuckled. “I played football.”
She nodded. A moment of silence clung in the air as she sipped her drink. Then she said, “I went to your games in high school, but I also remember how you set up more than a few poker games. You always read people correctly.” His sexy smile lit the room, and her skin melted, literally fused into itself.
“I remember that. You cheered with my sister, and I played you, too.”
*~*~*
About the Author
Victoria Pinder grew up in Irish Catholic Boston before moving to the Miami sun. She’s worked in engineering, after passing many tests proving how easy Math came to her. Then hating her life at the age of twenty four, she decided to go to law school. Four years later, after passing the bar and practicing very little, she realized that she hates the practice of law. She refused to one day turn 50 and realize she had nothing but her career and hours at a desk. After realizing she needed change, she became a high school teacher. Teaching is rewarding, but writing is a passion.
During all this time, she always wrote stories to entertain herself or calm down. Her parents are practical minded people demanding a job, and Victoria spent too many years living other people’s dreams, but when she sat down to see what skill she had that matched what she enjoyed doing, writing became so obvious. The middle school year book when someone wrote in it that one day she’d be a writer made sense when she turned thirty.
She’s always been determined. She is amazing, adventurous and assured on a regular basis. Her website is www.victoriapinder.com .
Member of Florida Romance Writers, Contemporary Romance, Celtic Hearts and Savvy Authors.
Get a FREE Novella as a Thank you Gift here:
https://victoriapinder.com/returningforvalentineshorttimeoffer
Tagged: Guest Blogger Posted in General | Comments Off on Victoria Pinder: Secret Crush (Free Read!) | Link
Thursday, August 18th, 2016
When some friends in my Nice Girls Writing Naughty group started talking about the idea of an anthology, the idea intrigued me. We were to write a story that was a standalone, but linked to the others by an object – a piece of jewelry or an artifact. We decided to use a bracelet, and thus The Charmed Bracelet was born. Four romance stories where boy meets girl, but with a twist: in the beginning of the story, our characters find the bracelet and it brings them together. At the end of the story, they lose the bracelet, so it can be found by the next pair.
Rachel Wilder and I, who write as Noon & Wilder, wrote “Lost and Found,” about a computer programmer named Shannon who works for a large multinational firm in Chicago. Since she works with the European desk, she’s up and at ’em at three in the morning. Not much goes on at that time of day, until she witnesses a murder. The bracelet catches her eye, dropped behind a trash bin, and when she bends down to retrieve it, the bin shields her from the view of the murderer. There’s only one problem.
He finds out about her.
Enter our hero, Del, who realizes the danger she’s in. They don’t have any solid evidence of a murderous stalker, so he takes it on himself to provide protection. All that’s well and good, but not if the murderer figures out where Shannon is.
The Charmed Bracelet is available now at your favorite etailer. I hope you enjoy!
Amazon | B&N | Kobo | Apple | ARe
—
“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.”
– E.E. Cummings
My links: Blog | Books | Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon | LinkedIn | Pandora
Knoontime Knitting: Blog | Twitter | Ravelry
Noon and Wilder links: Blog | Website | Facebook | Twitter
Join my Writers Group, The Writer Zen Garden: Blog | Website | Forum | FB Group | Twitter | Meetup
Join my Readers Group, Nice Girls Writing Naughty: Blog | Website | FB Group | Twitter
National Novel Writing Month: NaNoWriMo | ChiWriMo | Blog | FB Group | Twitter
Tagged: Guest Blogger Posted in General | Someone Said | Link
Last 5 people who had something to say: ButtonsMom2003 -
Monday, August 15th, 2016
Dear Reader,
Welcome to the Delos Series! HOLD ME is the novella sequel to HOLD ON, Book 5, the “big book” about Callie McKinley and Beau Gardner. It follows them after Book 5 is finished to find out “what else” has happened to them and their relationship.
So often I get emails from readers who want to know, “Well, what happened to them next?” Or “Where are they now?” Or, “What happened to them?” Well, now you have your wish! You can follow your favorite hero and heroine in additional novellas as they fall in love, continue on toward marriage, getting married and deal with life issues that we all deal with.
I’ve developed at least one novella after each of the major 55,000-100,000 word book. They will each have at least one novella, usually an epilog. But where the characters and their particular lives are at, I may well write more than one novella for them. You can kind of understand the visual of a train engine with boxcars behind it. In this case? The books are the train engine. The novella(s) that follow are boxcars. Together, they weave and add layers to the original story of the hero and heroine. I will always try to get the novella out within a year of the big book being published. And I would dearly love to hear what you think of this idea that I’ve cooked up for the Delos series. And also look for additional ideas and suggestions from you regarding it. This is new territory for me, and I’m at this juncture because you, my readers, have brought me to this point. So often, you wanted MORE on a particular hero and heroine. And I could never write it for you.
Now? I can. So I need your input, for sure! Don’t be shy about contacting me via my website, www.lindsaymckenna.com.
HOLD ME is about Army Delta Force operator, Sergeant Beau Gardner and Callie McKinley. If you read HOLD ON, then you met Callie because she was the younger sister to Dr. Dara McKinley.
Callie McKinley has had an escape and brush with death, but is now home at the Eagle Feather Ranch in Butte, Montana, with Beau Gardner. She was nearly raped by the Taliban and saved by the man who loves her. She comes home with PTSD.
Beau must return to Bagram after thirty days leave with Callie at the beautiful Montana ranch. Callie has an intuition that Beau could be killed. She tries to fight her fear. Four months into his six month deployment, her world turns upside down. Now? She must somehow pull herself together to be there for Beau. It is a hard journey for both of them as they both wrestle with their own demons brought on by war. Will their new love withstand this assault upon it? Or not?
Let me hear from you about the Culver Family and the Delos series. Happy reading!
LINKS:
Apple/iBooks
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/hold-me/id1122804403?mt=11&ign-mpt=uo%3D4
Amazon
https://amzn.to/1WT2RdK
Kobo.com
https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/hold-me-13
BN.com – will be available day of publication, 8.11.16
Audio (Tantor Media)
https://tantor.com/hold-me-lindsay-mckenna.html — available 11.22.2016
Please sign up for my newsletter, www.lindsaymckenna, (on front page) to stay up with my busy writing schedule!
Tagged: Guest Blogger Posted in General | Comments Off on Lindsay McKenna: Hold Me | Link
Sunday, August 14th, 2016
A few months back, I got the rights back to Personal Protection, a novel I wrote back in 2008. Part of preparing to self-publish it meant I re-read the manuscript to clean up anything I wasn’t happy with, or correct any errors that might have been missed. I discovered the biggest was the technology my characters used back then compared to what they’d do now. I hadn’t realized how much technology has changed just in those 8 years.
There were still pay phones around back then – try and find one now. The iPhone had only just been released, (the iPad was still a future innovation) but most of us still carried flip phones or had phones with screens that slid up to reveal a keyboard. Back then most companies trusted their email only on BlackBerry’s proprietary system, as at the time it was supposed to be the most secure system, so that’s what I had my guys carry. Not anymore, so I changed it so my characters now carry a smart phone with no brand that could crash and burn within a few years.
Though there were phones that could link maps to a GPS in 2008, most people still used dedicated GPS devices to find their way around town. And the tracking devices all the private detectives and cops use on people’s cars nowadays? They were pretty high-tech and unavailable to most folks back then. Although I’m pretty sure Sam and the boys had access to some new James Bond-like devices. 😀
VHS had given way to DVDs, but streaming wasn’t a big thing back then. Up until October 2008, when you mentioned Netflix people thought DVD rental deliveries not the NetFlix app with its list of instantly-available shows. (Does Netflix even deliver DVDs anymore?)
Twitter and Facebook were still in their early days; there was no Pinterest or Tumblr, no Foursquare (is that still a thing?) or Instagram. The reference to YouTube is still applicable—it started in 2005.
And I don’t think my guys back then would have understood carrying your phone around to capture animated characters. Or maybe they would have been right out there on the forefront.
Although there are days when I think it might be nicer to be less “connected” to our phones…and I wonder where we’ll be in another ten years…
What modern technology do you love? Or dislike?
PERSONAL PROTECTION
Despite owning a security business, Sam Watson refuses protection for himself, even after receiving threats from a stalker. His second-in-command, however, isn’t willing to take no for an answer, and assigns Sam a security detail headed by none other than Rosalinda Ramos—Sam’s secret object of lust. As an employee, she’s strictly hands-off. Though, working so closely together, Sam isn’t sure how long he can resist.
A female in a male-dominated industry, Rosie has enough on her plate just proving her worth, so she keeps her attraction to Sam firmly in check. Until she learns he co-owns an exclusive sex club. While investigating the club as a possible source of the threat, Rosie discovers her own interest in certain sexual proclivities. Before long, it’s all bets off, and all hands-on, for Sam and Rosie.
But the couple will soon discover the real threat to Sam is much, much closer to home…and something from which Rosie may not be able to save him.
Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble ~ iBook ~ Kobo
Read more about Personal Protection on Leah’s website.
And if you haven’t already read it, don’t miss book 1 in the Hauberk Protection series, PRIVATE PROPERTY or sign up for her newsletter to learn more about future releases https://eepurl.com/bDFPRb
About the Author
Leah Braemel is the only woman in a houseful of males that includes her college-sweetheart husband, two sons, a Shih Tzu named Seamus and Turtle the cat. She loves escaping the ever-multiplying dust bunnies by opening up her laptop to write about sexy heroes and the women who challenge them.
Reviewers have awarded Leah’s books numerous Top Pick and Recommended Reads designations as well as nominated them as Best Contemporary Romance, Best Erotic Romance and Best Ménage and More. Leah has also been nominated as Favorite Author and Best Erotic Romance Author.
Website https://leahbraemel.com
Blog https://leahbraemel.com/blog
Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLeahBraemel
Leah’s Facebook Reader Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/620181921421317/
Twitter https://twitter.com/LeahBraemel
Pinterest https://pinterest.com/leahbraemel/
Tagged: Guest Blogger Posted in General | 4 People Said | Link
Last 5 people who had something to say: Jen B. - Leah Braemel - Shirley Long - Pansy Petal -
Friday, August 12th, 2016
This month started with book six releasing in my Fantasies A-Z Series! This one is Zeke’s Meeting!
The series title is based off of the characters names, Aslan and Zeke. They are a kinky couple that is doing a bit more than dipping their toes into this lifestyle called kink. And they’re exploring it one fantasy at a time. Back and forth from Aslan to Zeke to Aslan….you get the picture.
So there was a stranger fantasy, a dirty pitstop fantasy, wanting to be wanted, girl-on-girl, medical fetish and now the mile-high club. So delicious! Love getting to share these fantasies!
And right now I’m traveling around Iceland and Scotland! So what better way to celebrate than having a giveaway! To one lucky commenter I’m going to give a spanking (pun intended) new e-copy of Zeke’s Meeting!! How do you enter? Super easy! Just tell me your favorite fantasy to read about!!
Happy Commenting!!
Amazon – https://goo.gl/PQLbZc
Kobo – https://goo.gl/FGN9SI
Smashwords – https://goo.gl/OSufWp
Are Café – https://goo.gl/Yt2NKc
Ibooks – https://goo.gl/If8F2j
Website – https://www.jenniferkacey.com/books/zekesmeeting.html
The mile-high club has never seen this kind of meeting.
To secure their Moroccan contract, Zeke and Aslan finally decide they have to invest in a private jet with a full-time pilot. It was a sound business decision that they’d contemplated for years. But who is to say they can’t mix a little bit of pleasure with their business? Or a lot of pleasure…
Zeke’s ready to collect on his next fantasy. His request is wrapped together into becoming a member of the mile-high club. But he’s not looking for just a quickie in a cramped bathroom. More along the lines of an entire buffet spread out naked across their conference room table.
When Aslan learns they aren’t the only kinky couple on the plane, her idea of a business meeting takes on a whole new meaning.
This is the sixth short story in a serial release all featuring Aslan and Zeke. A married couple looking for more and finding it in the arms of each other. There will be nine stories total, with one being released every month or so. Short kinky stories meant to tantalize and excite you. May you fall in love with love and everything that word means to your fantasies…
Decadently Yours,
Jennifer Kacey
Jennifer Kacey is a writer, mother, and business owner living with her miniman in Texas. She sings in the shower, plays piano in her dreams, and has to have a different color of nail polish every week. The best advice she’s ever been given? Find the real you and never settle for anything less.
Website – Newsletter – The Decadent Divas– Amazon Page
Facebook – Facebook Author Page – Twitter – Goodreads – Pinterest
Tagged: Guest Blogger Posted in Contests!, General | 4 People Said | Link
Last 5 people who had something to say: Shirley Long - debag - Jennifer Kacey -
Thursday, August 11th, 2016
Excerpt from “In Need of Repair”
Biceps Boy started extra early the next morning. The compressor roared to life and her eyes flew open. Slam-bang from the hammers. To top it off, one of the geniuses brought a radio and the serenade of some country boy done wrong sent the hair up on her neck. She grabbed her bedside clock. Six freaking thirty.
Samantha leapt out of bed, pulled on cutoffs and slid a t-shirt over her head, and barely blinked the sleep out of her eyes before stumbling down the stairs.
She spotted Biceps at the table saw and marched over, her flip flops snapping against her heels. “How long are you going to make my life a living hell?” she shouted over the noise.
He looked up at her with a shocked expression. Damn, he had the most incredible green eyes. Fringed with dark lashes and set in a face worthy of the gods, his eyes slowly crinkled as he grinned and looked her up and down. “Where did you come from?”
Of course. A fucking redneck construction guy who couldn’t see past her breasts. “I live right there,” she said, jamming her thumb toward the garage apartment.
“Nobody told me,” he said mildly, looking back at the saw. He turned off the spinning blade and picked up a battered travel mug. “Sorry about the noise, but we’re going to be here a while,” he said, taking a drink.
Against her better judgement, her gaze drifted. She was helpless to stop herself. Much as she wanted to be furious with this guy, she couldn’t ignore his appeal. Under that faded navy blue t-shirt, his shoulders stretched almost wide enough to block a doorway. Sprinkled with sawdust, his tanned forearms rippled with corded muscle. As if he could pick her up. Or hold himself over her for hours…
Everything about him made her think of sex. How fucking long had it been since she thought about sex? How completely inappropriate could this be?
She stopped herself before her gaze wandered past the tool belt and brought her attention back to his face. Big grin, all white teeth and dimples. A look that said he could eat her alive and make her like it.
Worse, he didn’t hide the fact that his gaze kept wandering down the front of her t-shirt which she realized, now that she’d come half awake, did nothing to hide her failure to put on a bra. Or the fact that her nipples reacted to his stare. Her bare toes curled.
“That’s just not acceptable,” she said, planting her fists on her hips. She considered taking a swing at that jaw. “You’ll have to wait three weeks to resume work here. I have a deadline.”
He laughed. “You’re kidding.”
She huffed. “I’m not kidding. I have to finish this project. There’s no way I can work with all this noise.”
“Lady, we have a deadline too. We’ve got more work to do than we’d planned and not enough time to do it. I’ve had to hire more guys. If anything, it’s going to get a lot noisier around here.” He studied her from under the brim of his battered ball cap. “Close your windows.”
Her teeth clenched as she resisted the urge to curse out loud. “My windows are closed. I can still hear every hammer strike and every note blaring from that damn radio. There’s got to be a law or something.”
“Sorry,” he said agreeably, adjusting his hat over his short sun-bleached hair. “Not.”
How could he be so nonchalant? Her entire future was at stake. “What about common decency?”
She looked up as three men rounded the corner.
“Hey, boss, that scaffolding…” one of them said, breaking off when they saw her.
The heat of their scrutiny swept up her face in a hot flush. What the hell had she been thinking, coming out here half dressed? These cutoffs weren’t fit for public view and she never went anywhere without a bra. She hadn’t had coffee, hadn’t even brushed her teeth. She crossed her arms over her chest, trying to disguise the condition of her breasts.
“Give me a minute,” Biceps said, jerking his head sideways to send them away.
His eyes settled on her again. She didn’t like what she saw, this mixture of sympathy, curiosity, and lust. Was it just in this redneck’s DNA to make her feel helpless? She looked away.
“Go work at my house,” he said. “You’ll have the place to yourself. I promise, it’s quiet.”
She stared at him. He couldn’t be serious. “That’s absurd.”
~~~
Read the full steamy story for only 99¢
Buy links: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01I5TOG3E and
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/647155
About the Author
Lizzie Ashworth lives in the wilds of the Ozark Mountains with her cats, hound dogs, and whichever child has taken up temporary residence between grad school and relocation. She’s been writing her entire life and can’t express how wonderful it is to share stories with readers like you. Every book comes from the heart in the hopes that readers will find a bit of pleasure within those pages.
Sign up for Liz’s free monthly e-newsletter, Liz’s Hot News. Free monthly newsletter with excerpts, freebies, pre-release deals, and much more. Sign up at https://eepurl.com/bHOyS9
Follow Liz for free erotic short works, hot photos, and the occasional rant on my blog at https://lizzieashworth.com/
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