 LAUNCH PARTY!!!! WOOT! T-minus 6 days..5..Posted by Jeanne Adams Aug 31 2011, 4:01 am in Deadly Little Lies, dianna Love, James Bond, Jeanne Adams, McGyver, Runaway Bride, Sharon Sala, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Thomas Crown
WOOHOOOOOOOO!!!! This would be the reason: Deadly Little Lies was the book that almost wasn’t. It was written during one of the darker periods in my life as my father’s health was failing, and I had a difficult time getting it completed. (BTW, Thank you again, to all the Banditas and BB’s who helped me through all that. Ya’ll quite simply rock!) Of course, once I got it done, I had to edit all the weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth out of it before I turned it in. There was a LOT of that. I mean, a LOT. And, ya’know, heroes in modern stories just shouldn’t gnash their teeth. Really. Bad for their teeth, right? Grins. And my hero, Davros, called Dav, my dashing Greek shipping magnate, has beautiful teeth. I couldn’t endanger those pearly whites! I actually had to make a map of the tunnels so that I was sure I had done it right. Good thing I like to draw because MAN was that complicated! Yikes! For those of you who write, I know you feel my pain, right? Right? Please say you do, and if you don’t lie, and make me feel better, okay? For those readers who aren’t also writers, this is how it goes sometimes. You feel like you’re pulling the book out of your imagination a struggling word at a time. Ex-haust-ing. Then you turn it in. And you wait. And you get nervous. And you decide it’s the absolute worst book you ever wrote and you’re going to die of mortification when it comes out and bombs and….and…and…. My only comfort was the memory of hearing La Nora (Roberts) say that sometimes, in the middle of the book, she’ll call a friend and complain that she’s never written such terrible schlock in her life, and it’s the worst pile of (expletive deleted) she’s ever seen.
Insomnia. Nervous Wreck. I considered taking up serious drinking as a contact sport. Grins. But I really like to drink to CELEBRATE, so….. Much to my (immense) delight, and relief, DEADLY LITTLE LIES received a TOP PICK from Romantic Times Magazine. The reviewer wrote: “Non -stop action and heart-stopping danger make this book unputdownable!” Now, I don’t know about you, but unputdownable sounds pretty darn good. I don’t know if it’s a real word, but I don’t care. Now you can understand my relief. Other reviewers have said they stayed up late to finish it in one gulp. WHEW!!! Thank heavens. But my insomnia had actually started early on, in the production stage, after the “get the timeline straight” call from my editor. Did you know that authors do cover quotes? I’m sure you read those. At least all of us newer authors HOPE you read them. If you don’t read them, please don’t tell me. If you do….what do you think of them? Do you ever take a look at a book based on the cover quote? Oh, and to give you further insight into my insecurity, you realize that those much-more-famous-than-me authors actually have to read the book, ahead of time, and quote on it? As I approached that stage, I was all but ready to throw in the writing towel. I was sure my colleagues would laugh…or worse, pity my poor efforts. I was a flat, wrung out mess. So you can imagine that I nearly keeled over and died when she gave me a quote for the cover of Deadly Little Lies, calling it: “…an edge of your seat read.” Oh, lawdy, where’s my celebratory cocktail? Really, really, relieved. Grateful, and relieved. You see, I had the worst time re-reading this book for edits. Terrible. Usually I sail through all of that. Not. This. Time. So I had to send this book to my colleagues before I gave it a last edit. HORRORS!!!!
Sven! Bring the special Hurricane Earthquake Punch!!! (Hey, we have to also celebrate the fact that the power stayed on in the Lair, in the Writing Caves, and at my house because several of us have Sept. 1 deadlines! And no earthquake damage!) Paolo!! Bring the hors d’oeuvres! We need sustenance for our Launch Partying. Demetrius!! Bring the torches! Someone needs to light up these caves….which leads me to giving you a little excerpt. Grins. Dav, the hero, is claustrophobic. His enemy had locked him, and his lady-love in an underground cell. They have to figure a way out….they find a door and… Dav took a deep breath and started into the tunnel. The light wobbled, then steadied and he could feel the warmth of Carrie’s presence at his back. Two steps in, she wrapped her fingers in the loop of his belt. Somehow, Much later, they’re both despairing…. “I want to keep going, she insisted. What if there’s a way out, just beyond this?” She stopped suddenly and he heard her draw in a shaky breath. “Oh, my God, Dav, what if it’s a dead end?” “Carrie,” he kept his voice firm in the face of her rising panic. “I will not allow you to die. I have told you this, yes?” We will find a way out. Now, come and sit down, rest. You can tell me your secrets and I will tell you mine.” In spite of his own fears, Dav makes sure Carrie feels safe. He’s really a wonderful hero, without being “too perfect to live” like some heroes are. He gets hurt, bruised, banged up, has a panic attack about being underground (his father used to lock him up as punishment – something to panic about!), and yet, he keeps himself level for her sake. He’s kind of like a 21st Century, Greek Indiana Jones in a way.
Carrie on the other hand, is more like McGyver. She’s the one with the pocket knife that has 27 tools. She’s the one who figures out an alternative exit. She’s more like Annie Walker on Covert Affairs, without being a spy. Or maybe a bit more like the Julia Roberts character, Maggie Carpenter, in Runaway Bride, she is capable, competent, and mechanically inclined, but she’s got some scars that keep her wary. If you read DEADLY LITTLE SECRETS last year, you’ll have already met both Davros “Dav” In my regular form and fashion, things blow up. There’s a fairly high body count. Grins. Oh, and did I mention a LOT of twists and turns? This would be why you need the torches. Ha! So, grab a flashlight, pen light, mag light or torch, get a Bloody Mary, or a Margarita, or a glass of milk and some of Sven’s famous chocolate chip cookies (He stole the recipe from Joanie T – YUM!!!!), and grab a chair and start reading. Then….riddle me this, spelunkers…. Are you more like Bond or McGyver? Annie Walker (Covert Affairs) or Maggie Carpenter (Runaway Bride)? What about your Significant Other? Or if you don’t have one at the moment, which type do you prefer? The polished, lethal weapon-type like Bond, or the rougher-hewn, all-purpose, get-you-out-of-any-jam like McGyver? Or in more recent vernacular, are you more like Michael Weston (plan it, execute it) from Burn Notice, or Hank (use what’s at hand, make it work) from Royal Pains? And which do you prefer? Let’s get this party STARRRRRRRTED!!!! Music! Lights!!! Cookies!!! Drinks!!! Do Judge a Book!Posted by Jo Robertson Aug 30 2011, 4:01 am in book covers, book titles, Jo Robertson, The Avenger, The Watcher by Jo Robertson Many of my friends say that the book’s cover is what draws them to it in the first place. They prefer bright, rich colors and have definite tastes about what’s included on the front: hate headless torsoes, love bare chests, hate “busy” or “dull” covers, love glossies or pastels and sexy step backs. Sometimes they claim they’ll buy a book because the cover is so engaging, so brilliant and beautiful, they havc to own it! I’ve always been a pragmatic gal and think I can have my cake and eat it too. So while I enjoy a The Great Minnesota Get TogetherPosted by Susan Sey Aug 29 2011, 4:44 am in Uncategorized by Susan Sey There are a lot of reasons I love my adopted home state of Minnesota but one of the biggest is the state fair. We have the world’s best state fair. Nothing against your state fair, I’m sure it’s lovely. But the MN state fair just makes me happy. It’s about five miles from my house, first of all, but there’s a free park & ride less than a mile away that runs every fifteen minutes from 8 a.m. until midnight so we bike over there. I’m all about letting Metro Transit do the heavy lifting when it WHAT IF?Posted by Suzanne Ferrell Aug 28 2011, 5:01 am in Cleveland Indians, Suzanne Ferrell, What If... by Suzanne Okay, those new to the blog may not know this, but I’m a big baseball fan. Yep, Love me some boys of summer! Now given my love of western historical romances, you’d probably think my favorite team would be the hometown Texas Rangers. Uhm, I do root for them to win as long as they aren’t playing my favorite team, The Cleveland Indians. That’s right, I’m a fan of the Tribe! We pay to watch 162 Cleveland games every year on TV. Through good years and bad, we root for our Indians. Now this past spring’s scouting report Shake, Rattle, and Aloha — An Earthquake TalePosted by crocodesigns Aug 27 2011, 4:28 am in Aunty Cindy explains it all for you, Hawai'i, travel posted by Loucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindy When an earthquake rattled the East Coast this week, it made me think about my own experiences with having “the earth move.” The DH and I are native Californians who have never lived anywhere but the Golden State. Given California’s reputation with regard to earthquakes, the two of us have lots of stories to tell about quakes, right? Wrong. DH has never been in a major earthquake, and the only one I was ever in happened when I was six-months-old (which hardly counts). In fact, these two old Californians had to go all From The Big Easy to Big BirdPosted by Nancy Northcott Aug 26 2011, 4:27 am in Atlanta, empty nest, summer vacation by Nancy This blog might also be called “What I Did on My Summer Vacation.” Who else had to write that at some point–show of hands? Yep, I thought so. I hated those essays, maybe because going to the beach with my family for a week or visiting my cousins didn’t sound very interesting. After all, we did both of those every year, with nothing unusual or noteworthy ever happening. This year, I started my summer with a first (and only) for me, by going to college orientation with the boy. He chose a school in the Deep South, so HOW TO SEDUCE A BILLIONAIRE Launch Party!Posted by Kate Carlisle Aug 25 2011, 4:19 am in How to Seduce a Billionaire, Kate Carlisle By Kate Just when you thought it was safe to venture back into the Lair for a quiet afternoon of meditation … IT’S PARTY TIME!!! That’s right! Welcome to the official launch party for my latest release from Harlequin Desire, HOW TO SEDUCE A BILLIONAIRE! This is the third book in my Duke Brothers trilogy and I’m so excited to celebrate its publication this month. The story takes place in the beautiful Napa Valley wine country, so that’s where the party is! Please step right out onto the wide terrace and check out the sweeping view of the Valley and Bandit Booty!Posted by Beth Andrews Aug 25 2011, 3:55 am in Bandit Booty, Sarah Mayberry The winners of copies of THE LAST GOODBYE and ONE GOOD REASON by Sarah Mayberry are: Minna and Cindy Sample! Congrats, ladies! Please send your snail mail information to Sarah at: sarahjmayberry@hotmail.com Bandita Booty!!!!!!!!Posted by Donna MacMeans Aug 25 2011, 3:53 am in Uncategorized And the winner of a copy of Redeeming the Rogueis JENNIFER TANNER JENNIFER – if you can go to www.DonnaMacMeans.com and send me your contact information, I’ll get your book out asap. Thanks everyone for stopping by on such an “earth-shattering” day (grin) Claim of InnocencePosted by Guest Aug 24 2011, 3:58 am in Claim of Innocence, KJ Howe, Laura Caldwell, Long Way Home, The Rome Affair By KJ Howe Please welcome talented MIRA author Laura Caldwell to the Lair. I asked Laura to answer a few questions about her background and book. Laura, thanks so much for joining us today! Describe your latest book in 15 words or fewer In Claim of Innocence, Izzy and her best friend, Maggie, defend a woman charged with poisoning her own best friend. What inspired you to write CLAIM OF INNOCENCE? I’m admit I’m sort of marrying my real life with my fictional life in Claim of Innocence. My character, Izzy McNeil, is a redheaded Chicagoan who worked as a
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