Fresh FIction Box Not To Miss
Jill Marie Landis | Welcoming Westerns Back
Uncategorized / August 31, 2007

Aloha One and All: A big Mahalo (thank you!) to Fresh Fiction for inviting me to blog today. This is such a fabulous site, one that makes promotion painless for those authors like me who somehow look up from the monitor only to discover a year has gone by and I’ve yet to let readers know what’s been going on and when to expect my next novel. I’m pleased as punch to announce that next year my first single title novel for Steeple Hill will be published in July ’08. The title is now officially, HOMECOMING, and for those of you who have read my early Western Historical Romances and have been asking for more, this one is for you. Written as a Western Inspirational Romance, HOMECOMING is the kind of story I love to tell about characters who find the strength to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles. It’s a book that romance readers can pass along to their daughters and grandmothers as well. Whenever anyone asks how I was able to switch from secular romance novels that were on the sensual side to Inspirational Romance, I remind them that I’ve always tried to instill a sense of hope and triumph…

Gemma Halliday | High Heels Mysteries
Uncategorized / August 30, 2007

Yay, I get to be on the Fresh Fiction blog! (squee!) Hi all! I’m Gemma Halliday and I write the High Heels Mysteries about L.A. shoe designer turned crime fighter, Maddie Springer, and the sexy yet stubborn LAPD detective, Jack Ramirez. So far I’ve had a blast writing about Maddie’s many adventures. In Spying in High Heels she navigates the L.A. freeways (no small task!) to track down a missing boyfriend, $20 million in embezzled funds, and ultimately, a cold blooded killer – despite the interference of one sexy detective, trying to derail her ‘girly’ investigation at every turn. The second book, Killer in High Heels, begins with a mysterious phone message that leads Maddie to Las Vegas were she encounters a group of Prada smuggling shoe counterfeiters, a handful of aging drag queens, and once very scary mobster. Not to mention the likes of Ramirez, hot and bothered to see her interfering in one of his investigations. Again. The third Heels installment just hit bookstores and, not to play favorites, but I think I had more fun writing this one than any of the others! Undercover in High Heels finds Maddie back in L.A., Hollywood to be exact, where…

Jess Michaels | “What’s in a Name?”
Romance / August 29, 2007

Well, I’m back! But this time it’s under my other name. Yes, that’s right, I’m one of those schizophrenic authors who has two names (actually three if you count my real name, which I really should since if I don’t that’s kind of scary). You already met and talked to me as Jenna Petersen earlier this month. Jenna writes historical romances for Avon. They are Regency-set and sensual. I hope they are also highly emotional and dark. That’s what I strive for, anyway, so if you like that sort of thing… well, look me up! But Jess… ah, Jess. She’s a whole other beast. Yes, she still writes highly emotional and dark stories, but she crosses over that sensual line and into the erotic. So if you like your love scenes a bit more adventurous and detailed, but you still want a story in there, too, Jess might be your girl. Luckily, both my names have books out in the next two months (Seduction Is Forever in October from Jenna, Everything Forbidden in November from Jess). It’s kind of weird being two (or three) people all at once. First off, there’s the name calling. Not that kind of name calling….

Sabina Jeffries | Why Write Series?
Romance / August 28, 2007

Why NOT write them? The connected series is a staple of most genre fiction. Mystery series have abounded for decades, as have fantasy and science fiction series, but only in the last fifteen years has the romance series become popular. At the beginning, they were rare. When an author did write them, as with Johanna Lindsey’s Malory series, they weren’t necessarily planned out ahead, the way they are now, with publishers announcing the series connections from the beginning. More often, authors wrote isolated connected books here and there, like Jayne Ann Krentz’s Gift of Gold and Gift of Fire (two of my all-time favorites). Eventually the romantic series came into its own, and now authors write them more often than not. My own School for Heiresses series, Regency-set historicals featuring the spirited graduates of Mrs. Harris’s School for Young Ladies, is the fourth series I’ve written. These unconventional heiresses who prove a match for society’s most irresistible rogues are connected only by their association with the school, but I’ve also written series where the characters were friends, royal half-brothers, and sisters. Here’s why I like writing them: The over-arching themes—in this particular series I include a running thread in the…

Book Club Rewind – Robyn Carr
Romance / August 27, 2007

Well once again, I forgot to bring my notepad and pen with me to the book club dinner table. I did have it with me….just not at the table when we first started chatting with Robyn Carr (this month’s Plano book club author). Luckily one of the other ladies was able to run to the other room to get it for me. Thank goodness especially since I am getting to this so late. My evil day job is keeping me from everything lately. My apologies. As I said, Robyn Carr was the Plano book club’s author for our August get together. Anyone who has read her Virgin River series will be pleased to know she did spill the beans about characters in upcoming Virgin River books. The series could go on and on with the current area residents and Jack’s five unmarried marine buddies. Book 4, likely to be released in late 2008/early 2009, will center around Paul & Vanessa. Book 5 will center around a retired Army blackhawk helicopter pilot who owns several cabins in the area and a young caregiver named Shelby who was briefly mentioned one of the existing Virgin River books. Book 6 is Ricky’s book…

Lori Wilde | A New Series, Martini Dares
Romance / August 27, 2007

I have a book coming out in September, called My Secret Life from Harlequin Blaze. But it’s not just any book. It’s the first book in a series I’m with my writers pals, Carrie Alexander, Isabel Sharpe and Jamie Denton. This series is particularly special because about the time we conceived of the idea, Jamie was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. We’d sent the project to our editors, but because Jamie was going through chemotherapy, we all decided it was better to back burner the project. Jamie gracefully volunteered to back out and let someone else take her place, but we wanted Jamie and we wanted her to know we believed in her recovery. I’m happy to report Jamie came through chemotherapy with flying colors and we went on to write the stories. Her bravery, optimism and all around darn good storytelling abilities make this a fabulous success story. So to give you a sneak peak into the Martini Dares, here’s the series proposal we sent to the editors. SERIES SET-UPThe Premise Desperate Housewives meets Sex in the City in this series featuring four desperate career women, four dark secrets, four steamy dares and four very sexy men….

Cait London | Psychic Triplets
Romance / August 23, 2007

How do writers get their stories? Much of our research is built into us, and we just need to find a story line in which to place it. I get my story ideas from everywhere: from my title or databases, from anything I see in the news/television, anything I see driving along the side of the road, a photograph, a drawing, or by just generally observing people. I’ve just finished the third story in the psychic triplets’ contemporary trilogy. The first story concerns Claire, the empath and the youngest, in AT THE EDGE. The second is Tempest’s story, A STRANGER’S TOUCH (4/08); she uses her hands to determine the history of an object. Leona’s story (11/08), the one I’ve just finished is as yet untitled, and concerns her abilities as a precognitive, or “precog”. Where did I get the idea for this trilogy? Since I am the mother of three daughters, I had some idea of their interaction. Their birth order also determines some of their personality traits. Claire, our empath, is basically in seclusion, in a cottage-type situation and she is a handcrafter, creating designer handbags. Since I am also an artist and have done handcrafting, including sewing, I…

Cathy Spangler | Lions and tigers and . . . Sentinels! Oh, my!
Romance / August 22, 2007

I admit it. When I was growing up, I loved watching the Wizard of Oz, which was shown on TV once a year. I adored the magical and fantasy elements, and of course the HEA ending. But then I had teethed on fairy tales and already had magic, mystical creatures, resourceful heroines, and hunky, princely heroes firmly ingrained in my imagination. Then when I was eleven, I came across the book “Many Mansions” by Gina Cerminara, which was about the psychic Edgar Cayce. That was the beginning of my life-long interest in metaphysical subjects and in the Cayce readings. I was especially drawn to his readings about Atlantis (over 700 of them). So it’s no wonder that my books embraced romance and the paranormal from the very start. After I wrote the Shielder series (science fiction romance), I turned to romantic urban fantasy, and found the perfect venue for my fascination with Atlantis and all things paranormal. Enter the Sentinels, reincarnated Altantians whose sole purpose is to track Belians (evil Atlantians also coming to Earth to wreck havoc). Both Sentinels and Belians have superhuman powers, and they’re waging an ageless battle of good versus evil. But wait—there’s hope for our…

Kelley St. John | Cajun Cousins not to be Missed
Romance / August 21, 2007

I’m so excited to be guest blogging on Fresh Fiction today! Thanks so much for having me! I’m Kelley St. John, and I write sexy, sassy contemporaries for Grand Central Publishing (formerly Warner) and Harlequin Blaze. This year, I’ve begun The Sexth Sense, my Harlequin Blaze series about six Cajun cousins who happen to have an interesting family legacy – helping ghosts find their way to the other side. All of the current Vicknair mediums are in their twenties, at the peak of their lives, and to-die-for sexy. Oh, but don’t think that the sizzle stops with the family; those ghosts have plenty of heat going on as well. I’m having a ball writing about the Vicknair family and am thrilled that Harlequin has also purchased the next three books in the series to come out in 2008. Here is the book trailer/teaser for the series, if you want to check it out: See this video at www.OneTrueMedia.com Oh, and if you like the Louisiana plantation setting, be sure to register for the Louisiana plantation vacation giveaway at my website. I can’t wait to give one reader a trip to the gorgeous Oak Alley Plantation in the heart of Cajun…

Karna Small Bodman | Up Close Political Thrills and Suspense
Uncategorized / August 20, 2007

I was scheduled to be in the staff car with White House Press Secretary Jim Brady on March 30, 1981 – the day of the assassination attempt against President Reagan. I was Jim’s Deputy at the time. At the last minute, Jim said, “There’s a lot of work to do today – a lot of press calls to return. Why don’t you stay back. I can handle this one alone – you go tomorrow. This is just a speech to some union group over at the Hilton. I’ll be back around 2:30.” As we all know, he never came back. That day, along with many others will always be seared in my memory, and when I sat down to write my first novel CHECKMATE, I spent time reflecting on those personal experiences, figuring I had a ton of material for a series of political thrillers. Authors are always asked, “Where do you get your ideas?” Of course, any daily newspaper offers a veritable Petri dish of plot points, but I decided that “being there” is even better. When I later took the job as Senior Director of the National Security Council, we were dealing with crises almost on a daily…