News and Updates

The world has lots of exciting and scary things going on right now. I’ve been watching the news and trying to balance normal life sanity with keeping up with what’s going on outside my door. And in the middle of that, I realized I’ve got four books coming out this fall. Yes, FOUR!   The first is out now! AS RICH AS A ROGUE, the third installment in my Rakes and Rogues series launched last week!  Woo hoo!   Here’s the problem. There’s a ton of work to do before a new book’s release and I’ve been avoiding all of it. So here are my Top 6 Ways I’ve been avoiding promotion work:   WENT ON A DIET – There’s really no time to do promotion when I’m sneaking chocolate and then yelling at myself for sneaking chocolate.   GOT LOST IN THE NEWS …

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Ever wondered how I think? Here’s a glimpse into the way my brain churns out stories. I’ve always loved the smart hero over the alpha hero. Certainly alphas must be smart, but I’ll pick the witty scientist over that he-man Special Forces guy. If you’ve ever watched Stargate, I much preferred Daniel Jackson to Colonel Jack O’Neill. But even more than that, I love, love, love the self-aware hero. He’s the one who knows his faults and (often) hates himself for them. It’s up to the heroine to show him that his faults are part of what makes him the special man he is. The times when we make mistakes are the times when we grow and learn. Can’t get wisdom from a vacuum, right? So the self-aware hero also has been through a lot and has learned from it. …

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I had a fabulous time at Barbara Vey’s reader appreciation luncheon. First off, I did the welcome speech that included a # phrase.  Guess what I wrote! #GiveMeBooks #Cupcakes&Grizzlies #IwasVeyed #HistoricalRomanceIsTheNewBlack Answer: 3.  #IwasVeyed   Barbara Vey loves readers. It is her mission in life to get great books into readers’ hands. And this event did just that. Lots of fabulous authors. Lots of wonderful readers. And great books all over the place!    The luncheon actually spans a 3 day weekend now with Q&A on Friday night, the luncheon plus events all evening on Saturday, and a Sunday morning breakfast.  The Q&A was great even if Tonya Kappes killed me.   MadLibs were amazingly fun Saturday night. And guess what I learned on Sunday?   Grizzly bears have detached, prehensile lips. Zombie Joe taught me how to make personalized travel mugs Barbara laughs really loud sometimes It …

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Here are some pix that give you a taste of the fun we had at Barbara Vey’s Reader Appreciation Event.  

What a great event! I go every year, but somehow she manages to get better and better each time. So last year, I swore I’d make my table prettier than last time. Guess what I added? Tissue paper. Lots and lots of tissue paper. Who cares if it’s artistic? Gold nuggets are always stylish. I buried my table in books. Plush grizzly bears. Who doesn’t like to eat with a snuggly bear looking you in the eye? Answer: 3 and 4 – No tissue paper because whenever I use it, it just looks like a wad of paper. According to my friend and colleague Damon Suede, I failed to get the gay-man design gene. I have to agree. And as much as I’d like to bury my readers in gold, I can’t afford that. So they had to be happy with grizzly bears …

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I’m going to be travelling a bunch in the next four weeks. This past weekend I visited my daughters in Ann Arbor. Aren’t they lovely? Very mature and professional looking. I think they take after their mother. Next comes Barbara Vey’s event which will be over by the time this blog goes live. Watch for pictures on social media. Plus I’ve got a special #hashtag about the event. In case you missed the event, here’s my welcome speech. In my head, it was a rousing success. I have no idea how the real event is going to go! WECOME SPEECH – BARBARA VEY’S AUTHOR LUNCHEON Many years ago, I had an interview with a Publishers Weekly blogger named Barbara Vey. It’s a funny story if you want to ask either of us about it, but the punch line is that …

TRAVELLING! Read More »