Monday, November 25, 2013

More Stops on the Tour

Hello again! I've got some more blog tour stops to share with you guys today!
 
 
There are some lovely reviews from these bloggers:
 
 
(who made this, and I love it!)
 
 
 
 
and
 
 
Plus there's still a chance to win an ebook of Run for the Roses and a $10 gift card to Starbucks!
Just click any of the links above. :)
 
 
 
How was your weekend, everyone? I can't believe it's almost Thanksgiving! Unfortunately, I won't be able to see all my family for Thanksgiving this year, but Christmas will be here before you know it. I've already finished a bunch of my Christmas shopping. I really love buying gifts for people. :) Especially my kids. Is there anything more fun than buying toys? 
 
What's on your Christmas wish list this year?

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Winner!

Run for the RosesThe winner of the Run for the Roses ebook is. . . .Heather Holden! Congratulations, Heather! I just need your email address and whether you have a Nook or Kindle. :)

Thank you to everyone for making it a great release day! RUN FOR THE ROSES is currently at 27 on Amazon for contemporary short stories. So, yay! :)







Today you can find me answering twenty questions here. (And find out that I'm sort of boring! Lol. Sorry.)

And a lovely review of RUN FOR THE ROSES here!

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Give Aways!

Hello everyone! Today is release day for RUN FOR THE ROSES and there will be a few opportunities to win a free copy!

If you go HERE you could win an ecopy, plus a $10 gift card!

On my Facebook page I'll be giving away a couple ebooks today, so check it out!

And I'll give one away here, too. In the book Abigail is after a huge goal, one the pretty much consumes all her time and energy. What are some of your big goals? Have you reached them, or are you still working toward them? And what are you willing to give up to get them?






Run for the RosesAbigail Conrad has spent her whole life training for one goal: to win the roses at the Arabian Youth Nationals. She’s given up friends, a social life, and doesn’t have time to even think about guys -- much less date!

Now that she’s headed off to college in the fall, it’s her last chance to be a Youth National Champion, and she won’t let anything distract her from that dream.

Except maybe Chase, the older brother of Abigail's biggest rival. He’s charming, funny, and possibly Abigail's biggest problem. How can she focus on riding when her mind keeps wandering to Chase’s green eyes and confident smile?

With her dream on the line, Abigail had better learn to fight her growing attraction to Chase, or she might end up losing the roses and the guy.



You can find RUN FOR THE ROSES on Goodreads, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble.

Monday, November 18, 2013

I'm not here today.

I'm over on Falling for Fiction, sharing some more pictures from the cover shoot for RUN FOR THE ROSES. Which comes out tomorrow, by the way! Yay! So stop by and take a peek, and say hello! :) Thanks!

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Interview with Mia Josephs and Riley Janes!


All right Miss Janes and Miss Josephs,

 

You have two very different characters in this book. One very put together, and one falling apart. What was it like getting inside their heads?

 

Riley: Brooke was the easiest and loudest main character I’ve ever written. She was always RIGHT THERE, so much that when I sat down to write her chapters, I’d pump out 2-3K without even thinking about it. Getting inside her head was fun, even though she was so demanding ;)

 

Mia: Nate didn’t stretch me too much. I love writing broken-hearted guys. I did it in Falling, and I did it here. The hardest part about tackling that is making them heartbroken and sweet without being a woman (not to stereotype, but…yanno…like the stereotype). He was loud in my head before I had a setting or a plot or anything. I came to Riley and said – you’d be perfect for writing this girl, and I THINK this is what sort of happens, you game? And she sent me a first chapter later that day.

 

As collab partners, did you ever disagree on how things would play out for these two?

 

Riley: No? I don’t remember! LOL. We wrote the book in a week…so there wasn’t much time to argue about where the book would go. I was easy. Just make them kiss in the end and I’m good.

 

Mia: There was a point where I was like, uh… I’m not positive this is working, but I was plowing through my next chapter and then I get this email from Riley saying – hey, we need to tweak a few things… And like she said, we drafted this book in a week where we both needed something FUN. Also, the tweaking took like an afternoon…

 

What was your favorite scene to write? What was your favorite scene to read from your partner? Did they ever totally surprise you?

 

Riley: Oooh! I’m going to share my favorite scene Mia wrote, because it was hilarious. OK. This is hilarious and one of my fav funny scenes, BUT it came about because Riley said she wanted a scene like this, so we worked it in. I love that you expect more for the girl to walk in on the guy, instead of it happening this way…

 

I set my camera on the counter and head for my room, stripping my damp undershirt off in the process. “Brooke?” I ask and nothing.

Maybe she changed shoes in a hurry. I can’t imagine what else she could possibly be doing. I walk through the quiet living room when I hear the most distinct soft moan.

I freeze as scenarios flit through my brain. Mom’s not here for sure. It was definitely a girl and definitely from Brooke’s room. Another small whimper comes from behind her door, and I’m drawn to it before thinking.

I’m about to call her name again when I realize there’s definitely something happening, and maybe I shouldn’t interrupt. Mom’s voice screeches in my earpiece. “Brooke! Now please.”

Okay. This is definitely off. It’s not like Brooke to miss a page from Mom.

“Brooke?”

“Yes,” she gasps from behind the door, and I step back unsure if her “yes” was in response to me or something else entirely.

“Brooke?” I give a soft knock. “Are you getting the bouquets?”

“Oh. Shit. Oh.” There’s an odd scrambling sound, a couple of thumps and then, “Just a sec. I had to… I needed my flats, I…”

Her door flies open as she dials in her earpiece. Her cheeks are pink, and I swear she’s breathing a little hard.

“You alone?” I ask, glancing behind her, the pieces starting to fall into place.

She glances at me quickly. “Seriously, Nate. Put on your damn shirt.”

 

 
Oh my gosh! That is kind of hilarious!



My favorite scene to write was probably one where Brooke tries to get Nate to give her a foot massage. But you’ll have to read it to see that part, lol. I LOVE THAT SCENE!!! I love the scene where she tries to snag another foot massage even more.

 

Mia: My favorite scene to write was… Oh! When Nate is trying to be all player-like and calls this girl like two minutes after she leaves the office for a date. That was fun.

 

And Mia never really surprised me, but it was always a big treat getting the chapters in my email not really knowing how things would play out.

 

And one just for fun, since these two work at a wedding planning business, what was your favorite thing to plan for your own wedding? The dress, the cake, the flowers, something totally different?

 

Riley: The honeymoon!
 
Lol!

 

I didn’t want to plan my wedding, lol. I wanted to elope! And we almost did a “planned elopement” which is where I got the idea for that term in the book… I don’t love being the center of attention, so yeah…an elopement would have suited me well ;-)

I can totally relate to that! We kept ours as small as we could with two big families. :)
Thanks for stopping by today! This was fun and I can't wait to read Unexpectedly You!
 

And thank you Rachel!!!!

HUGE THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!
 
Unexpectedly You Brooke Winters has every second of her day planned out. She makes lists for the satisfaction of checking things off. When Marks Events and Weddings has an opening, she knows she’s perfect for the job. What she doesn’t expect is that the boss’s unkempt and full of bad attitude son will be the person she works most closely with.

Nate Marks lost his fiancé and his best friend the moment he walked in on them sleeping together. He finds himself back at home in Las Vegas with his mother, taking photos for her wedding planning business instead of creating a portfolio to show at art galleries. Heartbroken and lost, Nate couldn’t care less about how he’s perceived by wedding clients… or the newest hire, Brooke.

When Brooke finds Nate at the office passed out and hung over, she quickly fixes him up to look presentable for their meetings. Nate spills about his broken relationship, and soon their clashed personalities balance each other out. But when they both discover there might be more between them, they panic.

Brooke’s determined to live life on her schedule, which never included a relationship with a co-worker or friend, and with Nate still aching over the girl he thought he’d spend his life with—they’re both about to lose a love they never expected to find.
 
You can find Unexpectedly You on Goodreads,
and on Amazon!
 

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

One Week!

Run for the RosesRUN FOR THE ROSES comes out in one week and I'm so excited! I've been sharing snippets on my Facebook page, if you want to check them out. :)

I'm very excited about this story, but I'm also nervous. (Of course, I suppose writers always are when a new story comes out.)

Horses were such a huge part of my life growing up, and they're still a very important part of my life now. I hope that the horse people I know who read this story will think it does justice to what horse showing is like, or can be like. I also hope the non-horsey people who read it enjoy it, and don't think it's 'too horsey.'

I also hope they don't think Abigail is a brat! Lol. She's a very driven person, but she has a lot of heart, too.

There's a blog tour starting next week, so I'll be posting links to that then. In the meantime I will have Riley Janes and Mia Josephs here on Thursday, giving an interview about their new book UNEXPECTEDLY YOU. (Which looks amazing by the way.) So be sure to stop by and say hello to them!

How about you, what are you looking forward to in the next few weeks?


PS. Thank you to everyone who commented on my IWSG post. You were all so sweet and helpful! I love you guys!

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

IWSG: (Anti-)Social Media

It's the first Wednesday of the month and that means Insecure Writer's Support Group Day. If you are a writer and you don't know about IWSG, go HERE right now. (Right now! You can read this post later, this is more important!) Big, big thank you to this month's hosts! The IWSG founder, the ever impressive, Alex J. Cavanaugh, and his amazing co-hosts, CD Coffelt, Tina Downey, Isis Rushdan, and Michelle Wallace, thank you, thank you, thank you!!





So here's the thing, I suck at social media. The reason may be, (and this is no shock to anyone who knows me) I suck at social real-life, too. I'm not a social person by nature. I'm thirty one years old and I have the same best friend I've had since the sixth grade. And other than my family, she's basically my only friend.

And I'm totally cool with that. I can't keep up with a throng of friend, I prefer to keep my social circle small and tight. Which is fine in real life, not so great online in a time where social media is such an important part of marketing. (PS. I suck at marketing, too.)

Don't get me wrong, I love my writing friends. I love reading people's blogs and FB pages, but I have a hard time keeping up. I don't know how people do it! Also, I don't know how to be interesting on social media without sounding fake. I rarely tweet. I forget to blog, or just can't come up with anything to say. I suck the least at FB. But even there, I've been posting teasers from RUN FOR THE ROSES every Tuesday, leading up to its release, and last Tuesday I totally forgot. I still posted on Wednesday, but geez. What is wrong with me?

Any way, that's it, I guess. If you have tips or advice you'd like to share I'd love to hear it!

How about you, are you a social media natural? Or do you struggle like me?

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Effortless with You

Effortless with You, by Lizzy Charles, is now available in paperback! Yay! I've been wanting to read this book so much, I've heard so many wonderful things about it, (seriously, super gushing, raving, wonderful things) but my Nook is broken and I haven't been able to get it! Needless to say, I have already ordered the print copy. :)
And you could win a signed copy in the rafflecopter below!
 
 
 
 








Effortless With You
by Lizzy Charles
Release Date: 11/05/13
From Swoon Romance

Summary from Goodreads:
School is out and Lucy is ready for the perfect summer: lazy days at the pool, invitations to the most exclusive parties, and romantic dates with her hot new boyfriend. That is, until she lands in trouble one too many times and her parents issue the ultimate punishment: a summer job. Suddenly, the summer can't end fast enough.

To make matters worse, the job is painting houses with Justin, the most popular, egotistical guy in school. Spending all summer with Justin might be other girls' dreams, but definitely not Lucy's. After all, Justin is cocky, annoying, and a jerk. So what if he's the most beautiful jerk Lucy's ever seen? Or that his grin makes her forget she’s mad at the world? Or that maybe, just maybe, there's more to Justin than Lucy realizes. Only one thing is certain: it won’t be the summer she wanted, but it might be exactly the one she needs.

Available from:
 photo B6096376-6C81-4465-8935-CE890C777EB9-1855-000001A1E900B890_zps5affbed6.jpg  photo 111AD205-AA04-4F9E-A0F4-C1264C4E9F30-1855-000001A1E8CEB6D7_zps9b730b94.jpg  photo KoboIcon_zps515cdc1a.jpg




About the Author
When Lizzy Charles isn’t scrambling to raise her two spunky toddlers or caring for premature and sick babies as a neonatal intensive care nurse, she’s in a quiet corner writing or snuggled up with a novel and a few squares of dark chocolate. Black tea keeps her constant and she loves guacamole. She married her high school sweet heart, a heart-melting musician, so it’s no surprise she’s fallen in love with writing contemporary YA romance novels.

Author Links:
 photo iconwebsite-32x32_zps1f477f69.png  photo icongoodreads32_zps60f83491.png  photo icontwitter-32x32_zpsae13e2b2.png  photo iconfacebook-32x32_zps64a79d4a.png

*GIVEAWAY*
$10 iTunes Gift Card (INT)
2 signed print book of Effortless With You (US only)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Blitz hosted by:

Monday, November 4, 2013

Real Girls Don't RustThe lovely Roxanne Werner has invited me to join her in an author hop.  Roxanne writes YA, MG, and picture book fantasies. Her short story, My Dangerous Heart, was in Real Girl's Don't Rust along with my short story, Seeing Red.

For the hop I'll be answering some questions, and then passing those questions on to new people. :) (You can check out Roxanne's answers here.)





What are you working on right now?
To be honest, I'm hopping from project to project right now. The main thing I'm working on is a short story I wrote a couple years ago. I'm rewriting it as a novella and it has been fun getting to write more of these characters' story.


How does it differ from different works in the genre?
It's a NA contemporary romance, and I guess one big difference is it's not dark and sexy! I mean, I hope it's at least kind of sexy, but it's not dark. It's more fun and playful.


Why do you write what you do?
I write the stories that pop into my head. When characters start having conversations in my brain I know it's time to start a new ms.

What is the hardest part about writing?
Um, what part isn't hard? I guess for me one of the hardest things is the waiting. When you're writing and revising it's all on you, but then you send it out into the world, whether to a cp, an agent, or an editor, and you have to just wait to hear back. And you have to wait until you're sure it's really ready before querying, too, which can be hard! And even when all goes well and it's going to be a book, then you have to wait for your cover, wait for your release. It's a lot of waiting and I'm not a patient person! Lol!


And now I'm going to tag Suzi Retzlaff, Theresa Paolo, and Jaybird. Answer the questions above! I want to know what you're up to!

How about the rest of you? What project are you working on right now?