THINKING OUTSIDE THE HEART-SHAPED BOX (Part One)

My guest is romance author, Marcia James. She holds an Interdisciplinary Masters degree in Communications and Creative Writing from American University in Washington, D.C. 

Marcia is involved in several charities and participated in a March of Dimes Celebrity downhill ski race in Big Bear, CA (Her team captain was Olympic gold medal pole vaulter, Bob Seagren.) She also spent an evening as the media escort for Tom Selleck during a U.S.O. event. (Held at Washington, D.C.’s Kennedy Center, it was a televised, celebrity-filled Bob Hope birthday special.)

By vocation she is a freelance video scriptwriter and advertising copywriter. In addition to developing marketing and promotional materials.

Marcia also offers a two week online workshop on author promotion that offers lessons on topics, such as niche marketing, author branding, and co-promotion/cross-promotion. Marcia's next workshop is August 15 - 28 and will include guest lectures from the following PR-savvy authors and publishing insiders: Melissa Alvarez, Dianne Castell, Carol Ann Erhardt, Karen Harper, Susan Gee Heino, Kathy Kulig, Donna MacMeans, Michael Matthew, Janice Maynard, Karen McCullough, Beth Morrow, Patricia Sargeant, Kay Stockham, and DeNita Tuttle. For more information on this workshop, please visit: http://neorwa.com/index.php/Workshops/Workshops


It is pleasure to have promotion savvy, Marcia, here Over Coffee to talk a bit about hidden promotion ideas for authors. She will be visiting today and again on Wednesday.


Even a small amount of daily or weekly self-promotion cuts into an author's writing time. That's why you have to decide carefully which PR options are right for you and your books. The romance-reading community is huge and voracious, but finite. If you can spot elements in your books that lend themselves to niche promoting, you can win new readers and help grow the romance market.



This is what I call "Thinking Outside of the Heart-shaped Box". Look at the different elements in the book you're promoting to see which groups might be interested in it. For example, since my books have Chinese Crested hairless dogs in them, I joined an international message board about “crestie dogs” to chat with people who not only are great subject matter experts when I need detailed information on cresties, but are also interested in buying books that feature the breed.


Here are some "niche promotable" book elements:

1. Hero and heroine's vocations – What are your protagonists' professions? If your heroine is special events coordinator, there is a professional association for people in that field. If your hero is a veterinarian, you can look into marketing to the veterinarians’ professional association.

2. Hero and heroine's avocations – What are your protagonists' hobbies? You might have a character who collects vintage cars, and there are many groups of vintage car owners. Your hero or heroine might knit or quilt (okay, your Beta hero might do these things!), and there are knitting and quilting groups online and maybe even in your community.


3. Hero and heroine's sports/physical activities – Do your protagonists play softball or volleyball, fish, jog, hike, canoe, etc? There are groups devoted to all sorts of sports.

4. Hero and heroine's charitable activities – Do your protagonists volunteer for Big Sisters, Special Olympics, homeless shelters, or animal rescue? Is your hero or heroine dealing with a medical challenge, such as cancer, or a physical disability? Charities -- and the people who support them -- love to know when their causes are mentioned in a fiction book.

5. Four-legged characters (not counting shape-shifters!) – There are many, many organizations for those who love animals. And there might be marketing opportunities at a Humane Society fundraiser (you could donate a themed basket with a signed copy of your book) or a pet adoption fair.

6. The timeframe and location of your novel – If you write historical novels, there are groups interested in many historical eras. For example, there are Renaissance Fairs and Civil War reenactments that might offer a chance to promote your work. If you set your books in a certain city, state, or country (and maybe feature events specific to that location), there might be events that offer marketing opportunities, such as a state bicentennial celebration, the Kentucky Derby, a Scottish festival, an art fair, a jazz festival, or a Taste of the Town.

7. Paranormal, science fiction (s/f), or fantasy elements – Quite a few romance authors in these subgenres promote their books at s/f or fantasy cons. There are also groups who are into vampire lore, shape-shifters, and dragons.

8. Elements that would appeal to specific fans – For example, do you have an Elvis impersonator in your book? Is your heroine's younger sister a Jonas Brothers' fan? Does your hero love film noir or NASCAR? There are groups for all of these.

On Wednesday, August 4th, I'll talk about niche marketing resources and other PR tips.

• Until then, I'd love to hear about your book elements and creative ways you can promote with them!

A randomly chosen commenter will win a free e-book, my comic romantic suspense, At Her Command.

Marcia James’ short story, Love Unleashed, was part of All Romance eBooks’ American Heart Association fundraiser in February 2010. Marcia offers her 300-page file of author promotion options free to any writer who requests it. Just email her through the “Contact Me” page on her Web site: http://www.marciajames.net./

Marcia James, when she isn’t penning romantic comedies with elements of mystery and suspense, is a freelance video scriptwriter and advertising copywriter. In addition to developing marketing and promotional materials, she writes romance articles for her local weekly newspaper. After years of dealing with such sexy topics as how to safely install traffic lights, Marcia is enjoying “researching” and plotting steamy love scenes for her romance novels with her husband and hero of many years.

In her spare time, Marcia enjoys volunteering for non-profit organizations. One of the benefits is networking with celebrities. Thanks to her involvement with good causes, Marcia asked the guests at her 1989 wedding to donate to charity vs. buying gifts. Word of the “non-profit wedding reception" reached People Magazine which covered event. (Her wedding was also featured in The Washington Post and Brides Magazine.)

An Author's Work Doesn't Finish With THE END.

An author’s work is never done with typing THE END.

I've often thought readers don't realize all the work their favorite authors put into the book that kept you up 'til the wee hours of the morning. You know about this author and their wonderful book, which made you late to work because you overslept, because they have also put in hard work on another aspect of writing—promotion.

Think about how many authors you've discovered over the last year or so. How did you discover them?


Chances are you discovered them through word of mouth.

• 1. You were able to hear about them because of the time and thought publishers put into getting public attention for the book and/or the author.

A friend read a blog and saw and excerpt and recommended the book to you. A librarian or bookstore clerk read a review (ARCs provided by the publisher for review) or something about the series in one of the trade magazines or catalogs. Or you follow blogs. The publishers’ promotion department generally sets these up.

• 2. You heard about the author or the book because the author thought about effective ways to promote themselves and their book.

Authors find that writing a good story is only the beginning of their work as an author. Keeping /renewing contracts depend upon sales. I’m sure authors would love to concentrate on just writing the next book. But they can’t do that. They have to build a readership/buyers for their product.


That’s business 101.

Word of mouth isn’t as easy as it sounds. How do you accomplish that? There is a plethora of ways to do lateral promotion. This takes thought, time, and effort to accomplish.


Analyzing the type of story you’ve written and pick out those elements you can highlight and then look for blogs about those issues or elements. Some authors donate a percentage of the books proceeds to Charities they highlight. Suppose your heroine/hero is a veterinarian involved with rescuing at risk animals—dogs, cats, horses, and whatever. No doubt the author has already looked at organizations involved with animal rescue as a way to highlight their story. Or perhaps H/H is involved with Relay For Life because they lost a parent, sibling, mate, or child. Since you used that as part of setting, why not look at that organization as a way of talking about your book? You highlight the book and the organization.



Susan Gable is an author who writes about persons with disabilities. Her research into making a viable story means looking at support groups and organizations. If these groups know she’s writing novel about a person with a disability word of mouth from that alone is worth the time and effort invested.



Then there are blog tours. This also involves time and effort. Time muse may be screaming at the author to sit their butt into the chair and write the next story. So to appease their muse and publisher it means scheduling their time to accomplish both and work on deadlines.



I set up blog tours and that means I work with authors, agents, and publisher promotion Reps. I know the work that goes into scheduling, blog set up, articles and interviews. I work with authors who go through a grueling couple of months meeting their fans either in person or on blogs.


Blogging takes time and creative energy. Think about seeing one of your favorite authors on a blog tour of say ten blogs. He/she has to come up with ten subjects to blog about that fit the particular blog site. There is only so many ways to talk about a book.

• The purpose of a Blog tour is to build an audience for the author's books. This means interacting with readers. Think of it as a online booksigning or a meet and greet.

So for a Blog Tour to be effective two things need to happen:

• The author has be present the day of their blog.

Granted, they don’t have to live at the blog site but they do need to visit several times during the day. Again, this is like an online greet the readers, so the author needs to be there to interact with their readers and fans. Authors defeat the whole purpose if they merely drop an article in a blog owners lap and move on.

Being a presence is one of my requirements to blog on Over Coffee, as is:

• Announcing their blog dates on their website, blog, or whatever social networks they belong to and provide the link to the blog site so fans can get there.

This takes some time on the author's part. It also takes time on the blog owner's part to announce the author so there are comments. It also means the blog owner needs to monitor the blog that day and if the comments are few, take steps to change that. So it's a partnership between author and blog owner.


It all involves a lot of creativity and just plain hard work.

So the next you pick up a book from your favorite author, consider all the hard work they put into not only telling an entertaining story, but also the work they did so you would know about them and their books.

Next week:


Monday and Wednesday,  Author, Marcia James, will be talking more about how authors can do lateral promotion. She will also be talking about the workshop she will be offering to writers on promotion.

Friday, I will be having Cheryl Brooks, author of the wonderfully hot Cat Star Chronicles and a bit about her book and what she does for fun. There will be two copies of Hero given away to two commentors.

Excerpt links, back cover blurbs on both authors work will be available.

Wrapping The Reader In The Moment

Jagged purple peaks, a hint of gold and rose on the horizon, the fresh breeze off a blue gray lake ruffling the hair against our cheeks. The rich scents of cinnamon buns fresh out of the oven, the first sip of fresh brewed coffee as we listen to birds sing up the sun. We’re wrapped up in the moment, all our senses engaged.

My guest, romance author Mary Wine, talks about the importance of immersing our readers in the moment.


Hummm….my thoughts tend to turn to making coffee cake when I smell a good cup of java. The aroma is just so rich, you want to close your eyes and immerse yourself in it.


I think a good book should hit a reader the same way. You should be able to feel the frost on your nose if it’s winter time or smell the flowers if it’s spring. That’s a challenge for an author but one that I think completes the story. Sure, we all read for the story but the setting is important too. Just tossing in a few ‘ye’’s and ‘yer’’s doesn’t transform the inside of that book.

Although, getting a grip on the Scottish brogue is interesting work. I had a wonderful opportunity two years ago when I turned around in of all places, Alaska and discovered myself sitting next to a gentleman from the Highlands. I actually asked him where he was from because I didn’t want to put my foot into my mouth by saying he was from Scotland in case he wasn’t. He laughed at me and asked, “Cannae ye tell woman?”


It was the beginning of a wonderful conversation. It turned out he was in fact a Highlander and traveling on the same ship we were. Now, it’s the honest truth I met him in a bar, that was also once an infamous whore house. Over the next few days, I was privileged to spend a fair amount of time with him and it was enthralling to listen to his brogue. It was also very interesting to learn about Scotland from someone who called it home.


Yes, ladies, he did in fact bring his kilt. On formal night, my husband and I love to dress in our Victorian finery. Hey, they said formal but they neglected to give a year. Well, our new highland friend was very happy to join us in his kilt and he looked smashing in it.


When I returned home and began to work on To Conquer a Highlander, I think I heard his voice in my head as I was writing the dialog. It really brought Torin to life, just a little bit more for me. Not that I have trouble seeing my heroes, in fact, there has been more than one instant when I’ve had to demand they take a break so I can sleep! By the way, Scottish Highlanders like Torin don’t like to be told what to do...but no book was ever written in a single day…I keep trying to tell my heroes this fact and they just glare at me and interrupt my sleep. LOL.


Yes, I’m that into my writing. I do wake up at night, with the perfect scene in my head and I debate whether or not to get up and write it. I hope you all enjoy the book enough to feel it’s worth it!

• What about you? How important is it to your reading pleasure to have your senses engaged?

A big thanks for having me by to blog and enjoy some coffee today!

Two commenters will have the chance to win a copy of To Conquer A Highlander. PLEASE leave me a way to contact you if you are one of the winners. If you don't want to leave your email on the blog, then please contact me via: siamckye@gmail.com with an email address. Thank you.

TO CONQUER A HIGHLANDER

A fierce Highland laird ready to kill for king and country…

When Torin McLeren discovers his neighbor’s plot against his king, he takes their daughter as his prisoner, thereby stopping her father’s plot from going forward. But that leaves him with a woman under his roof whom he can’t ignore, and not just because she’s his enemy’s daughter…

A woman who’s as much trouble as she is temptation…

Shannon McBoyd decides to use her captor to experience passion for the first time, and then to destroy him. But her plan goes awry because once she has lured Torin into her bed, she no longer wants to hurt the one man who seems to value and understand her…


Even if her father will kill him—and her—when he discovers what they’ve done...

This first in a trilogy of sexy Scottish Highland romance.

EXCERPT

BUY: •Amazon, •Barnes and Noble, Books-A-Million

Acclaimed author Mary Wine has written nearly twenty works of erotic fantasy, romantic suspense, and historical romance. An avid history-buff and historical costumer, she and her family enjoy participating in historical reenactments. Mary lives with her husband and two sons in Yorba Linda, California.

For more information, please visit http://www.marywine.com/

Interview With Pamela Palmer

Pamela Palmer Once Had Plans To Be Astronaut...

My guest is Best Selling author, Pamela Palmer. I hadn’t read any of her books. Oh, I heard and saw her name, but not read her. I attended RT (Romance Times Conference) in April and sat in on one of the panels on which she was a participant. Pamela was a bit quiet at first, but when she did speak she made some great points. I took note of what she said for later use and knew I wanted to have her as a guest.

I’ve since started reading her Feral Warriors series, which I love. Good solid stories, a touch of magic, suspense, a big dose of wonder. I love her world and it was fascinating how she created it. She shares a bit of that with us today.


Pamela, it was a pleasure to meet you at RT and I learned much from listening to you and others on the panels. I’m so glad to have you visit Over Coffee.

Thanks for inviting me, Sia! It’s great to be here.

I remember attending one of your panels during RT where you spoke about career arcs and when your publisher might prefer the use of a pseudonym. You have dual career arcs, one as Pamela Montgomerie, writing historicals and another as Pamela Palmer writing your Feral Warriors.


As Pamela Montgomerie you have a series called the Jewels of Time (Time travel) and Amethyst Destiny has just been released. Will you continue creating stories under this name how many books are planned in this series?

What made you decide to branch into dark paranormal?

There are currently two books in the Jewels of Time series, Sapphire Dream and Amethyst Destiny. Both are action adventure time travel romance set in 17th century Scotland. They were a lot of fun to write, but I’m concentrating on urban fantasy types of paranormals these days and don’t currently have any more time travels in the works. But that could always change.

Dark contemporary paranormal is my preferred reading right now, and my favorite genre to write. I actually started in this genre.

I didn’t realize that. I knew you wrote historical time travel…


You know I hadn’t read any of your Feral Warriors until I met you and you gave me a copy of Obsession Untamed (#2). I loved it. I like your world in this series. A kind of mixture of ancient and modern.

What gave you the idea for the idea of Feral Warriors?

My first sale was to Silhouette Nocturne. A couple of years later, I sold the time travels to Berkley and the Feral Warriors to Avon, almost at the same time. I’d submitted Sapphire Dream (the 2005 Golden Heart winner for Best Paranormal) to Berkley two years before and a new editor found it in one of their massive piles at the same time my agent was shopping the Feral Warriors.

It was a total coincidence that the two offers came in within weeks of one another. All three editors asked me to take a second name, so I did.

Thanks, Sia!


The idea for the Feral Warriors series started with the main characters of Desire Untamed – Kara and Lyon. At first, all I knew was that I wanted to tell a story about a girl-next-door heroine who thought she was human, and the fierce, dangerous male who stole her away for the power she possessed to save his race. I knew they were immortal. But not what kind of immortal.

I haven’t yet read Lyon’s story. But I love the idea of an unknowing immortal girl next-door theme. I like Kara, she’s strong but like glue that holds everyone together.

You’ve created a sort of family of warriors…

• I’m a huge fan of J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood, Alyssa Day’s Warriors of Poseidon, and Suzanne Brockmann’s Navy SEALs. I love the band of brothers theme, the warrior males bound together by a common cause or a common enemy, and the wonderful interactions between them. I knew I wanted to tell that kind of tale. My warriors were immortal, but what were they?

• I’ve always loved the concept of men who could shift into animals, but most shape-shifter books deal with packs and prides and although I love reading about them, that wasn’t the story I had in my head. I finally realized my band of warrior brothers weren’t exactly brothers at all. They were shape-shifters, but not a pack. Not a pride. Each man was the last of his unique line. Each shifted into a different animal. Each went by the name of that animal.

 The Feral Warriors were born.

Your series has only 9 warriors. Is there any significance to this number?

There really isn’t any significance. After coming up with that first story idea, I pounded out the details of the world, the warriors, etc. in a matter of a few weeks. There was no deep thought as to how many warriors I should have. Nine sounded like a good number, so I went with nine.

You’ve had one of your 9 warriors die. Will we see how they are chosen? Will we see a woman warrior?

Good questions, Sia. I haven’t written a scene about a warrior being chosen as yet, but I may. A woman Feral? Why not? : )

In your newest book in the series, Rapture Untamed, you write about one of my favorites of the Warriors, Jag. He’s a bit surly and argumentative, yet loyal, but you get the feeling he doesn’t want to care.


What do you like about him?

What about Olivia?

Jag has always been one of my favorites, too. He was great fun to write. I never knew what was going to come out of his mouth. But making him into a hero was a serious challenge. He didn’t want anything to do with that role. For a while, I wasn’t sure he had it in him. But he surprised me. And when he discovered the hero within himself, Olivia wasn’t the only one who fell in love with him.

Olivia is my favorite kind of heroine – tough, yet vulnerable if she ever lets you past her shields. She was absolutely strong enough to handle Jag. Even better, she saw past his pain-in-the-ass persona to the man he could be. Almost from the beginning, she understood him better than he understood himself. She almost had the upper hand with him for a while. Until he learned her secret.

You mention that you didn’t always want to grow up to write books?

I didn’t, not at all. I didn’t like English class, could see no reason in the world I needed to know parts of speech, and hated the books they made me read. I wanted to read Nancy Drew and Narnia, not Steinbeck. As a kid, I wanted to be an astronaut. In college, I lost interest in that dream and wound up majoring in Industrial Engineering, and then went to work for IBM.

Tell us a bit how you came to write romance?

I’d always loved to read and I was a constant daydreamer. Honestly, one day one of my daydreams got too big for my head and I migrated to the computer and started typing. A few days, and three chapters later, I was hooked.

For someone who didn’t think about writing as a career, you’ve done well, and Rapture Untamed is now on the bestsellers list.

Big congratulations on that!

Is this your first placement on the list? How did it make you feel or better, what was your reaction when you learned you were? Did you ever see yourself there?

Thank you! Yes, Rapture Untamed debuted at #28 on the New York Times extended list and #139 on the USA Today bestseller list. It was my first time on either list solo. (The anthology I did with Lynsay Sands and Jaime Rush, Bitten By Cupid, hit both lists last January.)




My agent and editor got the list at the same time, but my agent called me first, by seconds. My call waiting was beeping, my editor calling, while my agent told me I’d hit the NY Times list. I was thrilled, as you can imagine, though what I actually said, I don’t remember. Something like, ‘No way, no way.”




Did I ever see myself there? Sure. I don’t think there’s any writer who doesn’t dream that dream.

Do you write full time? Or are you still juggling a career as an Industrial Engineer, wife, mom, and now author?

• I’m a full time writer these days. I quit IBM years ago to stay home with my kids and focus on the writing.

You have two books released in two series, what’s coming up for next year?

• Hunger Untamed, book 5 in the Feral Warriors series, will be out in February. I’m still waiting on a release date for book 6, though I suspect it will be out late next year. Plus, I’m waiting for release dates for the last two books in my Esri series for Nocturne. The first two books, The Dark Gate and Dark Deceiver, came out a couple of years ago, but I got sidetracked with the other books and just finished up the last one. It’s possible they’ll be out next year, too.

Read, enjoy, and have a wonderful rest of the summer!

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Rapture Untamed Blurb


The most combative - and tormented - of all the Ferals, Jag is a predator who hunts alone - until daemons terrorize the human population. To stop them, he partners with Olivia, a flame-haired Therian temptress as strong as she is beautiful. But Olivia is no ordinary immortal. The survivor of a vicious supernatural attack, she possesses a deadly and forbidden skill - one that must remain hidden, especially from the powerful Feral Warriors.


As Jag and Olivia's sensual dance of dominance and seduction gets wilder and hotter, a dark force sets its sights on Olivia, threatening to destroy everything she has vowed to protect. And the only one who can save her soul is the arrogant jaguar shifter she lusts for but dares not love.

EXCERPT 

Buy: Amazon, Borders, Barnes & Noble 

When New York Times bestselling author Pamela Palmer's initial career goal of captaining starships didn't pan out, she turned to engineering, satisfying her desire for adventure with books and daydreams until finally succumbing to the need to create worlds of her own. Pamela lives and writes in the suburbs of Washington, D.C.

Please visit her on the Web at http://www.pamelapalmer.net/.

Tales Of Cindy And Ms. Crankypants

I work with authors who go through a grueling couple of months, after the book is released, meeting their fans either in person or on blogs. All the time, creativity, and plain hard work they do so you can enjoy their books. And the whole time, chances are, their Muse is screaming at them and telling them they should be using those skills for the next project. You know, the one with the current deadline?

Loucinda McGary (aka Aunty Cindy) has just such a muse,  aka Ms Crankypants.  She is not at all quiet about her thoughts on the matter either. Ms. CP  is a highly creative but argumentative wench. Also well loved by Cindy. But I'll let her tell you all about it. 


Thanks so much, Sia, for inviting me to join you today Over Coffee. But first let me get this one thing out of the way:


Buy my book, PLEASE!


According to my grumpy muse, this is the only reason to go on a blog tour – it’s all about pushing your current book.


I’ve tried to argue with her. I pointed out that it is not just trying to sell books. Blog tours are all about connecting with readers, developing a rapport with your audience, networking and promoting yourself and your work in the book world.

She just snorts (and rather rudely at that) and reminds me in no uncertain terms that if I don’t get my butt back in the chair and work on my WIP (work-in-progress) that there will be nothing for my readers to read, much less a reason for me to promote. (Aunty sighs heavily.)


She’s correct, of course, but does she have to be Ms. Crankypants? This entire blog tour has been a real test of wills. I sit down to write another guest blog post, and she throws a major hissy that I need to get back to my characters. I mutter about promotion, and she counters with my need to have a product to promote.


Yes, my muse is a harsh task-mistress… Not unlike what some people say about yours truly (and that would be my son and DH waving from the front of the crowd), but they hardly count because most of them make little effort to appease me. I, on the other hand, try really hard to obey Ms. Crankypants, even though she takes my story off in completely unexpected directions and has my characters doing and saying things I never imagined they would.


So why do I put up with her bossy and contradictory ways?

Because she never leads me astray, and this is critical for a seat-of-the-pants writer like moi. I can’t be wasting a lot of time and effort traipsing down the wrong path with my story, and as long as I trust Ms. Crankypants, I don’t.


I’ll give you a recent example. I love to end my chapters with a strong “hook” so that the reader has a hard time putting the book down (yes, I LOVE hearing that someone stayed up all night to finish one of my books). Being that die-hard seat-of-the-pants writer who never exactly knows where I’m going in my story at any given time, I sometimes have a difficult time finding that chapter ending hook.


Such was the case as I was writing my first draft of Chapter 4 of The Wild Irish Sea. I needed to find a hooky ending and I was utterly clueless what it might be. Enter my muse, aka Ms. Crankypants. After much wailing and gnashing of teeth over trying to figure out an ending for my chapter, I left my office and headed to the kitchen for a large dose of chocolate therapy. As I walked past the dining room table, I tripped over one of my DH’s sneakers. Do not ask me why, but the man insists on changing his shoes in the dining room (see my above comment about being a harsh task-mistress, but apparently not harsh enough). As I muttered a curse and kicked the shoe farther under the table to rest nearer its mate, Ms. Crankypants whispered, “What if that was Parker’s shoe, and it was washed up on the beach?”


Oh. My. Gosh!


I grabbed three Hershey’s kisses from the dish on the buffet and rushed back to my office to type the perfect ending for the chapter:

“The rain and the waves had swept smooth the sand around the half-buried boulders just as Kevin suspected. A few pieces of driftwood, hunks of seaweed and other debris lay tangled in the crevices around the rocks. If anyone had been through here, even as recently as this morning, no trace of their passing remained.



“While he breathed in a large draught of fresh, clean air, Amber sunk to her knees in the wet sand at the base of the closest rock. She clapped both palms flat against the sides of her head and squeezed her eyes shut.


Still trying to contact her brother.


…Through the remaining mist of rain, he spied the jutting black prow of the curragh at the same moment a shrill cry rang out. ‘Hallo! Kevin! Hallo! Amber!’


For the first time in the ten hours since they’d met, Kevin was genuinely glad to see Connor Magee. The boy stood and waved his cap in the air, while someone else, undoubtedly Michael Coyle, sat in the stern of the boat steering it.


Connor shouted again, and Kevin waved back.


"We’re about to be rescued," he called over his shoulder to Amber while the curragh angled toward shore.


…Her shoulders slumped and her head drooped in defeat. Behind him, Kevin heard the hull of the curragh scraping on sand. A moment later, Connor raced up to them.


“Kevin! Amber! I told Uncle Michael we’d find you," the boy breathlessly exclaimed.


“…C’mon!" Michael Coyle called out from the beached curragh. "You can talk later."


“Stall the ball half a minute," Connor yelled back. He plunked his hat on Amber’s head and grasped her by the elbow. "Tis only a short ride back to Malin Head."


While ConnerConnor towed Amber toward the curragh, Kevin took one more quick glance up the small crescent of sand.


Empty.


But then his gaze moved over the rocks. Sticking up in the midst of the greenish-brown kelp, he spotted an object that didn’t belong—a shoe.


A large shoe. The red and gray treads on the sole were unmistakably those of a trainer.

An American trainer.

So, my muse may be grumpy and cantankerous, but she really does deliver! I think I’ll be keeping her around for a good long while. After all, what’s a little orneriness between friends?


Thanks again for having me as a guest and listening to my tale of woe. Please pass the chocolate!

Wild Irish Sea back cover blurb:

Drawn together by a force they can't resist...

The telepathic image of her twin brother fighting for his life sends Amber O'Neill rushing to the rocky shores of Ireland. Desperate to find him, she turns to reclusive local inspector, Kevin Hennessy.

Bound together with a passion as relentless as the tide...

His past full of pain, Kevin has withdrawn from the world. But when the rain-drenched American appears on his doorstep with her wild tales of danger, something more than her sensuous beauty makes it impossible for him to turn her away.


The wildness of the sea, the mystery of a selkie prince, and a dangerous band of ruthless smugglers bring two lost souls together in a connection of mind, body, and spirit that can't be denied...

Excerpt

My Night Owl Review 

  

Buy Wild Irish Sea: Amazon, Borders, Barnes &Noble

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A long-time reader of romances, Cindy discovered and joined Romance Writers of America in 2001. But her stressful career as the manager of a multi-million dollar State and Federally funded program prevented her from doing much writing or traveling. She still managed to squeeze in a little of both, but not enough of either to be truly satisfying. Finally, at the end of 2003 she decided to take an early retirement from her career to fully pursue her twin passions of travel and writing. Cindy likes to set her novels of romance and suspense in some of the fascinating places she has visited.

Other books: Wild Sight, The Treasures of Venice
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What IS It With Males?

I grew up with a houseful of testosterone running amok. Estrogen based creatures were in the minority, so you’d think I would know how to handle it all with ease.


Most of the time I do.


It doesn’t matter whether it’s two or four legged males; there are certain patterns that come to the fore in certain circumstances. Regardless of my years around two and four legged males, or how much *understanding I have of them; there are days they still drive me crazy.


Today was one of those days.


Sunday is usually a peaceful, kick back day. First battle was with my son wanting to borrow the car and the reminder regarding chores came first. And then hubs and using his wimpy little push mower rather than the nice heavy duty-riding mower we have. Wimpy broke. We got all that settled. Well, I believe I suggested dunking their heads under the hose to cool off before coming back into the house.


Peace resumed.


Until the new horse arrived.

That would be the gelding (a male) that wasn’t supposed to be delivered until next week, when we had the holding pasture cut and ready for him. I should add that this is not my horse. Very close friend owns it, Daniel (a male), who has been dying to get a horse to ride again and I said he could keep it here. So I’m just taking out the biscuits from the oven when my girlfriend, his wife, calls and says they’re on the way with the horse.


Say WHAT? Please tell me you’re kidding? She’s not. Apparently the former owner (yep, another male) had to deliver another horse in my area so he decided this was the time to kill two birds with one stone. And me in the process.

Great. I have three horses, a proud cut gelding, Doctari, and two mares. This is Doctari’s herd. They’ve all carved out a certain hierarchy. Bringing in a new animal, whether horse, cat, or dog, there is a time of adjustment and that means I have to be there.


Outside.


Several hours, in fact, facilitating this new member’s introduction to my herd.


Daniel keeps telling me Diamond is a well-mannered gelding used to being around a herd and subordinate to a dominant male. I keep telling him, it’s not Diamond I’m concerned about, it’s Doctari, and my lead mare, Sweet Tea (who can be a nasty beeotch when she wants to be and should not have Sweet in anyway attached to her name).


We walk Diamond around on a lead in the pasture for a while. Proud arching of necks and nose sniffing ensues. Things are going well. This what I call the honeymoon period. Well, it was a short honeymoon. We let Diamond off lead. More sniffing. Sweet Tea takes exception to something Diamond does and kicks. Grrr. Doctari, of course, is concerned and comes closer to investigate. Nothing happens. They all head off to the oak in the pasture. Sweet Tea is being bitchy about this interloper. Doctari circles around and comes between them.

• “Oh look, Doctari is protecting Diamond,” Daniel says.

• I’m watching all this. I shake my head as Doctari again weaved between Diamond and the mares. “He’s not protecting Diamond, Daniel, he’s keeping his mares away from Diamond. Big difference. This is gonna get tricky, my friend.”

So long as Diamond kept his distance, all was well. But he’s young, not quite three. As soon as he tried to join the herd, Doctari would run him off. By now, I’m concerned because I’m watching how Doctari is moving and he’s run Diamond close to the fence a couple of times. Sweet Tea is instigating trouble and Doc disciplines her, and we have squealing and nipping as Doctari rounds up his mares drives them back to the oak. He’s now on guard between the mares and Diamond. I know trouble is brewing when Doctari comes to a stop on a small incline in the pasture. He’s turned to the side so he looks huge and his head is up, nostrils flared, he strikes the ground with his hoof. He’s watching Diamond slowly come back up the hill on the other side of the pasture (where Doctari chased him).


There is something very chilling about a challenging bugle of a male horse. The earth vibrates when Doctari takes off after Diamond again and this time I know there will be a fight. It doesn’t help that the mares don’t stay put but gallop behind him.

• “Oh sh!t, this is bad, Daniel. Diamond is going to go over the fence.”

• “Nah, he’ll get free.”

• "I'm tellin' you..."

Both of us are running to the other fence in the yard so we can see what’s happening. I watch as Diamond tries to break free from them and attempts to retreat to the center pasture but Sweet Tea cuts him off. Through the tall brush and grass I hear them and watch, helpless as Diamond tumbles head first over the fence and into the next field. I exhale the breath I didn’t know I was holding as Diamond gets up and shakes himself. He wastes no time putting the field between him and Doctari. I can tell he’s hurt but from this distance, I can’t tell where or how. I’m relieved to see him cantor across the field.


Daniel goes over the fence with Diamond’s lead, I run for the truck. My concern is the pasture borders the creek and there is a section where the fence is out. I don’t need him going through the creek and into the next pasture.


Daniel is coming through the pasture and I drive the truck to the other end. Diamond is literally at the furthest point in the pasture from the home pasture. That big pasture is close to a hundred acres and belongs to my neighbor. I call to Diamond and start talking to him, cajoling and praising him when he comes to me. I have no lead rope but he comes. I can see he’s bleeding where his chest caught the fence as he tumbled. Some blood is on his front legs as well. Great.


As he gets closer, I see the bleeding stripes against his chest. Nothing looks very deep but I won’t know for sure until I get him back to the house. Daniel has arrived now and I can see Daniel’s worried, but he gets the lead on Diamond and walks him. He’s moving smooth, no limping and that’s good. We get him to the house and wash him off, just scratches and nothing deep. No swelling.

My Danes are barking because there is a horse in the yard and not in the pasture, where they belong. Diamond is spooked a bit, but he’s a plucky thing. I think he knows they’re in pens. Once we have him calmed again it’s time to walk the gauntlet through the pasture. This time, the pasture is MINE, by god. Doctari was reminded and so was Miss Pain In the Arse, Sweet Tea that I’m the alpha queen. Needless to say, they backed off and behaved.


Diamond is in the barn and in a stall. Where he will stay until the holding pasture is ready.


Tomorrow is another day.

Picture 1: Doctari
Picture 2: Sassy
Picture 2: Sweet Tea and Doctari

Interview With Janet Evanovich

I asked a question, not long ago, on authors you would like to see on Over Coffee. One request was Janet Evanovich, author of the Stephanie Plum series. I’m happy to say, despite her very busy schedule, she made time to chat a bit and answer some questions for me.

Janet has written sixteen numbered and four between the numbers books in the Stephanie Plum series, which have consistently, topped the New York Times Bestsellers list. Although we didn’t discuss this, it is well known her contract with St. Martin’s press is up for renewal. Many have heard the news that Janet’s son Peter is negotiating the sale of her next four books, for $50 million—quite a chunk of change. It will be interesting to see if Janet stays with St. Martin’s where she reigns as one of their top authors, or finds another publishing home.


I know many of you love her Stephanie plum books and have favorite characters in those books. I’m sure many are also excited to see the casting of One For The Money, Janet’s first Stephanie Plum book. My understanding is that Katherine Heigl has accepted the role as Stephanie and Sherri Shepherd has been cast as Lula (I LOVE Sherri!). Shooting begins next week in Pittsburgh, PA, according to Variety .

Janet says she “sold the movie rights to One For the Money in 1993, and has no involvement or influence in the making of the movie...casting, directing, the script, editing, etc.”

I have to say I read my first Janet Evanovich when she wrote under the name of Steffie Hall, Hero At Large and Wife For Hire. I enjoyed her Bantam Loveswept Novels. Janet made me laugh with her humorous take on love and I loved her heroes—like Ivan, for instance.

• You did such a great job with romance why did you change genres?

I wrote series romance for five years, mostly for Bantam Loveswept. It was a rewarding experience, but after twelve romance novels I ran out of sexual positions and decided to move into the mystery/suspense genre.

• Then you created Stephanie Plum?

I spent two years retooling—drinking beer with law enforcement types, learning to shoot, practicing cussing. At the end of those years I created Stephanie Plum. I wouldn't go so far as to say Stephanie is an autobiographical character, but I will admit to knowing where she lives.

Janet, like many successful, productive authors, puts in eight hours a day writing, researching, dealing with her career, and is a dedicated writer. Plus she takes time to answer pesky questions from people like me.

• But when asked what her workday is really like, she answers with her trademark sense of humor:

I drag myself out of bed around six, shove myself into the clothes lying on the floor and plod down the road after the dog. I eat a boring breakfast of skim milk, orange juice and healthy cereal because when I wake up I always think I'm Christie Brinkley and it seems like something Christie would do.

Then I shuffle into the office I share with a really rude parrot. The dog follows after me and flops onto his bed to take a nap. (Next time around I want to be my dog.) I stare at the computer screen for about four hours, sometimes actually typing some sentences. I chew gum and drink green tea to keep myself from falling out of my chair in a catatonic stupor.

At noon I'm suddenly filled with energy and rush to the refrigerator, hoping a pineapple upside-down cake with lots of whipped cream has mysteriously appeared. Finding none, I make a tuna or peanut butter and olive sandwich. I go back to my office… I stare at the computer screen some more. When nothing appears on the screen I drive down to the local store and buy a bag of Cheez Doodles.

I eat the Cheez Doodles and manage to actually write several pages. When I'm done with the Doodles and pages I wander out of my office looking for someone to whine at because I just made myself fat. (I'm only Christie Brinkley in the morning. In the afternoon I'm Roseanne.) I alternate typing and whining for the rest of the afternoon until about five when I emerge from my office, once again hoping for the pineapple cake.

In case you didn't know, Cheez Doodles are her not so secret vice. :-) 

• I know you're publishing three books this year. That's a lot of work, both in terms of writing and promotion. Do you work on them sequentially or simultaneously?

I only ever write one book at a time.

• What's easiest (or hardest) for you-dialogue, plot, character, or something else?

Plot and transition are probably the hardest. I know the characters so well that dialogue is a bit easier.

• You have a long running series, how do you keep it fresh this far into a series?

Hard work, birthday cake, and wine.

• In a series, there's not much of a character arc for the main character, otherwise the series would be over. Yet there seems to be some subtle changes in Stephanie. Do you have a long term "series arc" in mind for her? Are there major changes in store for Stephanie in the next book?

I suppose there are always subtle changes from time to time, but until the final book I really don't envision much in the way of changes for Stephanie. She'll always get into hot water and not be terribly good at her job.

• Is Joe and Stephanie ever going to have a fight bad enough that she has a real fling with Ranger?

Ah, million dollar question. I'll never tell.

• Is there a real Joe Morelli and Ranger?
• I wish!

• How did you come up with the idea for the Hobbits in Sizzling Sixteen?

Hobbits and Mooner seemed as natural together as breathing.

• What's coming out next for you? Is there anything else you'd like to share with us?

Troublemaker, a graphic novel based on the characters from Metro Girl and Motor Mouth, that I wrote with my daughter, Alex, is coming out on July 20.

After that the first book in the new Diesel series, Wicked Appetite, comes out on September 14, 2010.

Then part two of Troublemaker will be in stores in November.



A very busy year for you. I’m looking forward to Wicked Appetite. Again, thank you for taking the time out your busy schedule to visit with us a bit.

• Readers: What’s your favorite character in Janet’s Stephanie Plum series and why? Which is your favorite of Janet’s books?

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Sizzling Sixteen

Trenton, New Jersey, bounty hunter Stephanie Plum has inherited a “lucky” bottle from her Uncle Pip. Problem is, Uncle Pip didn’t specify if the bottle brought good luck or bad luck....

BAD LUCK:


Vinnie, of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds, has run up a gambling debt of $786,000 with mobster Bobby Sunflower and is being held until the cash can be produced. Nobody else will pay to get Vinnie back, leaving it up to Stephanie, office manager Connie, and file clerk Lula to raise the money if they want to save their jobs.



GOOD LUCK:


Being in the business of tracking down people, Stephanie, Lula, and Connie have an advantage in finding Vinnie. If they can rescue him, it will buy them some time to raise the cash.



BAD LUCK:


Finding a safe place to hide Vinnie turns out to be harder than raising $786,000. Vinnie’s messing up local stoner Walter “Moon Man” Dunphy's vibe and making Stephanie question genetics.



GOOD LUCK:


Between a bonds office yard sale that has the entire Burg turning out, a plan that makes Mooner’s Hobbit-Con look sane, and Uncle Pip’s mysterious bottle, they just might raise enough money to save Vinnie and the business from ruin.



BAD LUCK:


Saving Vincent Plum Bail Bonds means Stephanie can keep being a bounty hunter. In Trenton, this involves hunting down a man wanted for polygamy, a Turnpike toilet paper bandit, and a drug dealer with a pet alligator named Mr. Jingles.



GOOD LUCK:


The job of bounty hunter comes with perks in the guise of Trenton’s hottest cop, Joe Morelli, and the dark and dangerous, Ranger. With any luck at all, Uncle Pip’s lucky bottle will have Stephanie getting lucky---the only question is . . . with whom?

Excerpt

Purchase:  Available in Hardcover Amazon, Borders, Barnes & Noble   

JANET EVANOVICH is the #1 bestselling author of the Stephanie Plum novels, twelve romance novels, the Alexandra Barnaby novels, and How I Write: Secrets of a Bestselling Author. She lives in New Hampshire and Florida along with her St. Bernard granddog Barnaby.