I’ve always been a foodie, one of those souls who wonder the earth wondering what’s for lunch? What’s for dinner? As a young girl I would spend time in my mother’s kitchen learning her secrets to good tasting food. I enjoyed many a meal with a large crowd of family. As a young mother, I felt I needed to make nutritious meals for my family and would go out of my way to find fresh produce, good cuts of meat and of course, a crowd a people to enjoy it all with. So it never came as a surprise that I would want to write a book that takes place around the best of food and wine.On a trip through the Tuscan country side, I became enchanted with the simple country fair, and though she wasn’t Italian, it reminded me of the simple things my mother taught me about food, One need not be extravagant with spices, sauces or expensive wines, stick to the basics. It doesn’t take a master chef to put together a good dinner. Read the rest… Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

A big thank you to everyone at Fresh Fiction for inviting me here today to celebrate the release of HIGHLAND WARRIOR, the first book in my new back-to-to back trilogy, featuring the “bad boys” of the Highlands, Clan Campbell. Back-to-back means you won’t have to wait long to find out “what’s next?” HIGHLAND OUTLAW comes out at the end of this month and HIGHLAND SCOUNDREL at the end of March. Like my first trilogy, featuring Clan MacLeod, you’ll find plenty of sexy Alpha heroes and “ripped from the headlines” history, bringing to life actual people and events with a sensual fictional twist. Click here to read the rest of the blog. Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

Saturday afternoon, the DFW Tea readers celebrated Valentine’s Day with a special tea. A lot of people were in attendance, we maxed out the tea house’s largest meeting area, and books were traded amongst the members. Valentine TeaValentine Tea at Patti’s Place Tea Room & Bakery Originally uploaded by freshfiction One very important book trade rule is don’t bring a book that you want to get back. It might or might not come back to you. So it’s better to solve future problems by just having a simple rule. This rule really doesn’t apply to me, as I don’t keep anything but the books that have been personalized to me from various signings I have attended. Naturally, those books don’t go to tea, and rarely get lent to anyone, even my closest, nearest, and dearest friends. You just never know when there could be a book accident. I am continually amazed at how amazed people are that I don’t keep books. Since I don’t keep them you would think I would be a more regular library user, but I really don’t use the library as much as I should. I like the idea of buying a book and being able…

Today is my favorite day of the year. Forget the hype. Forget the sensationalism. Forget the commercialism and the chocolate, the roses and gifts. Valentine’s Day is special to me because it symbolizes what I write about all year. LOVE. Do you want to know the best thing about LOVE? It’s given freely. It doesn’t cost a penny. Click here to read the rest of the blog. Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

“The decision to become a courtesan is not to be made lightly. A woman must be willing to make her own choices . . . and pay for them.” “–from the memoirs of Mlle. Blanche La Tour Thanks for the chance to guest blog here at FreshFiction. For those of you who’ve been following my blog tour, I hope you’ll bookmark this site. FreshFiction is fabulous. When I started writing VEXING THE VISCOUNT, I wanted to play with the idea of my heroine masquerading as a courtesan. But I knew Daisy Drake wouldn’t be convincing unless she had some inside information, so I allowed her to discover the memoirs of Blanche La Tour, a French “woman of pleasure.” Which meant I needed to research the life of an 18th century courtesan. Here’s a little of what I discovered: Move over, Britney! Eat your heart out, Paris! Courtesans were the original prey of the paparazzi. These darlings of the London tabloids provided the cartoonists of their day with juicy on dits and outrageous exploits to lampoon. Top-tier ‘birds of paradise’ demanded and received generous stipends, clothing allowances, jewels, houses, a box at the opera and endless diversions from their well-placed protectors….

I like to blame it on the popularity of evening soap operas during my formative years, but I just adore villainous but intriguing characters. Texas Oil baron J.R. Ewing from Dallas was one of the most hated characters on television—but he was also the reason millions of people tuned in religiously for more than ten years. His cold-blooded, scheming character was originally supposed to be a small part, but he was such a hit with viewers that it wasn’t long before the whole show revolved around him. Anyone alive at the time will surely remember the angst and intrigue over the burning question: Who shot J.R.? I’ve always wanted to write one of these odious yet absorbing characters, and with my new Hardcastle Progeny series, I finally have. The three book series revolves around billionaire tycoon Tarrant Hardcastle and his attempts to find an heir for his glittering Manhattan retail empire—by tracking down the illegitimate sons he once scorned. Tarrant is not a nice guy. Click here to read the rest of the blog. Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

Thanks to Jade Lee for sponsoring this week’s blog contests! Jade is giving away a $10 Amazon gift card to some one who comments on the blogs posted from Monday, February 8th to Sunday, February 15th. So drop by every day and check them out! And don’t forget about THE CONCUBINE, on shelves now! A new historical from Blaze about the original contests to be the Empress of China! And you thought it was all just invented with “American Idol!” Quick jump to blogs Quick jump to blog contest Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

My first crack at the “plane Jane” heroine took me by surprise. Given my love for larger-than-life characters, I wasn’t sure my muse was up to the challenge. Then I remembered that one of the best matches for a small-town-practical girl would be a big-city-dynamo of a guy. One Sunday night I was sniffling my way through yet another episode of Extreme Makeover Home Edition (come on…I dare you to watch that without crying at the end), thinking how any red-blooded American female would enjoy watching Ty Pennington rip up her hardwood flooring…and voila!—the idea for Bluegrass Courtship was born. Of course, I had to give this my own quirky twist, so I invented Missionnovation, the church-rehab version of home makeover a show. After all, how many church buildings could use a spruce-up to match the vitality of the congregations inside? Click here to read the rest of the blog. Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

I received my first “significant” Valentine in the second grade. The kid grapevine was abuzz with the news that Arlon (hottie of our class) wanted to be my boyfriend, and when he presented me a frilly red Valentine my eight-year heart was thrilled beyond belief. Since February is dedicated to love and romance I thought I would share some quotes that range from the sublime to the hilarious. Faces of Love If you get a card with a picture of Cupid on it, consider this one. I don’t understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine’s Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon. Author Unknown. And if you’re having second thoughts about love, here’s another one. Love is much nicer to be in than an automobile accident, a tight girdle, a higher tax bracket or a holding pattern over Philadelphia. Judith Viorst, Redbook, 1975 Okay, I got that out of my system, now on to the sublime. Sometimes we make love with our eyes. Sometimes we make love with our hands. Sometimes we make love with our bodies. Always we make love with our…

That’s the answer I give whenever asked the timeless question, “which is more important, character or plot?” And invariably I get a look of skeptical confusion. But to be truthful, we must recognize that not only can one not exist without the other, but that one cannot be successful without the other…a good character can not carry a book without a stirring story to breathe in. When we fall in love with a character, it is not only his or her instinctive traits that endear them to us, but their responses to the situations in which they find themselves. Quite frankly, Scarlett O’Hara (one of my favorite heroines of all time) would simply have been deemed a demanding diva if she acted the way she did under normal circumstances. If the war hadn’t broken out and if her struggle did not become one of survival for herself and her family, she would have become a character worthy of reality show depiction and abhorrence. Jeanne du Bois, the protagonist of my recent historical fiction release, THE COURTIER’S SECRET, would have been considered no more than a spoiled brat were her father not a controlling and abusive man, did she not live…