I had cheesecake for breakfast this morning. Completely self-indulgent, right? Not on the diet at all, let alone for breakfast. Saturday morning PSA cartoons really did teach me better than this. But it was integral to my writing process. It’s working cheesecake. Really. As writers, we’re told to include all five senses in our descriptions. Sight and sound come pretty naturally. Touch, well, I dare you to write a romance novel without it. Smell is supposed to be one of the most emotionally evocative senses, something about the olfactory part of the brain being close the memory storage unit… or something. But cheesecake is making me think about taste. To read more about food in books, and to comment for a chance to win a copy of Rosemary’s newest release please click here. Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

Oh how I wish I could share with you all my personal adventures walking and driving over the pastoral hills and valleys of Derbyshire, England. But, alas, that is not the case. Among the many challenges I faced in writing my sequel series to Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice was the fact that this American girl has never stepped foot in the United Kingdom. Research in all its myriad facets became a way of life as I undertook the task of revealing life as it would have been lived 200 hundred years ago in Regency England. On the top of the list was the necessity to know as much about Derbyshire as I possibly could. This, after all, is where Pemberley is located and the county that the Darcys would have called home for uncounted decades prior. I needed to visualize the landscape, smell the indigenous flowers, hear the rumble of the River Derwent, feel the breeze on my skin, etc. Thank goodness for the internet with its wealth of maps, photographs, tourist websites, and historical articles. As I examined endless pages, I not only got a firm grip on what the land would have been like two centuries ago,…

September 2009On Sale: September 8, 2009528 pages ISBN: 0385736908EAN: 9780385736909Hardcover$17.99Young AdultBuy at Amazon.com The Splendor Fallsby Rosemary Clement-Moore Can love last beyond the grave? Sylvie Davis is a ballerina who can’t dance. A broken leg ended her career, but Sylvie’s pain runs deeper. What broke her heart was her father’s death, and what’s breaking her spirit is her mother’s remarriage—a union that’s only driven an even deeper wedge into their already tenuous relationship. Uprooting her from her Manhattan apartment and shipping her to Alabama is her mother’s solution for Sylvie’s unhappiness. Her father’s cousin is restoring a family home in a town rich with her family’s history. And that’s where things start to get shady. As it turns out, her family has a lot more history than Sylvie ever knew. More unnerving, though, are the two guys that she can’t stop thinking about. Shawn Maddox, the resident golden boy, seems to be perfect in every way. But Rhys—a handsome, mysterious foreign guest of her cousin’s—has a hold on her that she doesn’t quite understand. Then she starts seeing things. Sylvie’s lost nearly everything—is she starting to lose her mind as well? Previous Picks Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books…

My husband and I share similar tastes in books. Granted, he likes some authors that I just can’t get into and vice versa. But our last few trips to the bookstore haven’t been fruitful for him. Why? Because the plethora of urban fantasy and paranormal romance seem to have staged a coup on the science fiction and fantasy shelves of the bookstore. This is not to slight these wonderful books, not at all. For I am a huge fan not only of reading them, but of writing them. But my husband is floundering his way through the section looking for some solid science fiction in the flavor of David Weber‘s original Honor Harrington book: On Basilisk Station or Peter F. Hamilton‘s universe spanning Reality Dysfunction. For pure fantasy, he’s still enjoying Jim Butcher‘s Codex Alera series (which I have to confess, I haven’t started reading yet!) I love Jim’s Dresden books and my husband does too, but I’ve not been as into the high fantasy in a while. Luckily, I have the whole series on the shelf so far, so when I do get to reading it, I will have it. So, here is my dilemma. Finding the kind of…

December 2008On Sale: December 23, 2008Featuring: Connan TreMellyn; Martha Leigh336 pages ISBN: 0312384157EAN: 9780312384159Trade Size (reprint)$13.95 Romance Historical, Romance Suspense Buy at Amazon.com Mistress of Mellynby Victoria Holt The Classic Novel of Romantic Suspense Mount Mellyn stood as proud and magnificent as she had envisioned… But what about its master–Connan TreMellyn? Was Martha Leigh’s new employer as romantic as his name sounded? As she approached the sprawling mansion towering above the cliffs of Cornwall, an odd chill of apprehension overcame her. TreMellyn’s young daughter, Alvean, proved as spoiled and difficult as the three governesses before Martha had discovered. But it was the girl’s father whose cool, arrogant demeanor unleashed unfamiliar sensations and turmoil–even as whispers of past tragedy and present danger begin to insinuate themselves into Martha’s life. Powerless against her growing desire for the enigmatic Connan, she is drawn deeper into family secrets–as passion overpowers reason, sending her head and heart spinning. But though evil lurks in the shadows, so does love–and the freedom to find a golden promise forever… Previous Picks Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

Sometimes I feel like Jimmy Stuart in “It’s a Wonderful Life,” gazing at the National Geographics and dreaming of adventures in far away countries. Instead of living those dreams, he stays in his town, filling the role thrust on him. I vicariously live my life of danger and adventure through my character, Jade del Cameron, the heroine of Treasure of the Golden Cheetah. With her running point, I can safely climb Kilimanjaro, charge a lion, and do battle against evil without breaking a sweat. Via Jade, I shoot rifle and bow, throw a mean lariat, fly a plane, and kiss a handsome man. (Well, I do get to do that last part in real life.) Jade is often described as “larger than life” and that’s probably true. But it makes me wonder, just what does “larger than life” mean? Frankly, life is pretty big. Sometimes that can be intimidating. We might find a safe spot and hide in it, camouflaging ourselves for anonymity. We stay with what’s comfortable and call risk takers crazy daredevils. So perhaps being larger than life simply means that a person grows to take in as much of life as possible. To continue reading what Larger…

August 2008Featuring: Elizabeth Canham; Griffin Fairfax352 pages ISBN: 0821781294EAN: 9780821781296Paperback$5.99 Romance Historical, Romance SuspenseBuy at Amazon.com His Wicked Sins by Eve Silver In the midst of desire, lies a killer… In the quiet hamlet of Yorkshire, the hallowed halls of Burndale School stand…and evil lurks in its dark corners. For a serial killer with a proclivity for blonde women has struck again-this time, murdering two of its teachers. Now everyone is wondering when the killer will seek his next victim… Elizabeth Canham has accepted a teaching position at the local boarding school in Yorkshire. But her quiet life takes a surprising turn when she meets Griffin Fairfax-the handsome father of one of her pupils. His mesmerizing stare quickly draws her in, and she can’t deny the fierce attraction between them… Griffin Fairfax appears to be a doting father and gentleman. But one disturbing truth lies at the heart of the murders-all of the victims were intimately connected to him. When Elizabeth discovers this, she wonders if it’s a mere coincidence or if Griffin could be a charming, seductive killer so many women have lost their hearts-and lives-to… A suspense packed gothic romance with a serial killer on the loose! Visit…

I have been spending a lot of time re-reading some of my favorite authors. And while I was re-reading and book swapping with friends, I came across an old Tami Hoag I had not read. After I got over the shock, and started reading, the heroine Genna made a great point. Why do women always go for the bad boy? In The Trouble With J.J., Genna doesn’t want to be attracted to Jared because she thinks he is. . . well. . . crazy. He is brash, wears weird clothes, has an earring, plays football for a living, and somehow has a love of plastic flamingos. What Genna wants is a stable, normal- corn flakes for breakfast, come home every day at five o’clock- kind of guy. Well this was a Bantam romance by Tami, so we know she goes for a walk on the wild side and takes a chance after all. But it got me thinking- what is up with my love affair of the bad boy. To read more about Sara’s fascination with the bad boy here click here. Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

If you live in the United States then this is perhaps a holiday weekend for you. It is for me, and I’ve been looking forward to it with much anticipation. Ideally I would spend the weekend lounging with a book, but I’m sure my reality is going to be much different. I have no real plans. My youngest son might wish to compete in a local bowling tournament, but I don’t know if he wants to or not. The last time we discussed it he was rather non committal. He does have an appointment with the eye doctor, but that’s the only thing carved in stone in my appointment calendar. I would like to get my house clean, but that’s something that’s usually accomplished when I don’t have people looking over my shoulder as to what I’m dejunking, so reading sounds like a nice staycation escape.. To read more about Sandi’s Labor Day plans, and to enter the weekend only contest click here. Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

Probably for about six hours. GASP. I know, it’s a shocker and I really should have thought about this earlier and had someone else guest blog today, but duh, sometimes the details overwhelm. Anyway, it was brought…FORCIBLY … to my attention that I haven’t had any “Sara” and “family” time this year, what with celebrating our FIFTH, isn’t that a kicker! It seems like we just started two years ago — ANNIVERSARY. I always say, go with your passion and you’ll be happy. And it works for so many people including me! So talk among yourselves or take the day off with a good book! I’ll be back tomorrow or definitely Monday (like I can go away for longer than 24 hours, ha!) and we’ll chat then. Oh, yes, taking a book or two with me in case I have free non-people time. I’ll tell you about it later. Until next time…Get out there and READ a book…Sara ReyesDFW Tea Readers GroupJoin us at Readers ‘n ‘ritas November 14, 2009! Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.