You ask what advice I’d give the hero and heroine at the beginning of WHAT THE DUKE DOESN’T KNOW. Somehow, the question made me think about the whole concept of romantic advice. Do people ever take it? Is anyone really in a position to give it? Certainly there’s advice flying all over the place today. And I admit I have a mild addiction to advice columns – Dear Abby, Ann Landers, Dear Amy, Miss Manners – any of them, really. I’ll be navigating the internet, maybe to pay a bill or do a bit of necessary research, and I see that headline. Too many times, I have to click: Happy Feet Are Great Comfort to Bride on Her Special Day. This is about comfortable shoes, yes? What else could it be? Unexpected Guest for Dinner Party Results in Empty Seats. A skunk got into the house? The dog tried to chase her out. The skunk jumped onto the table and Blam! Couple’s 40 Years of Marriage Began Later Than Kids Think. So they jumped the gun. It happens. Everybody take a breath. Surgeon’s Wife Surprised by His Covert Operation. Have to click on that one. I don’t think he’s going…

Thanks for having me at Fresh Fiction. I’ve written over a hundred books. And after writing a hundred romance books, it’s not so easy to keep my storylines fresh. But with some stories, it’s easier than others. Writing contemporary romance can be more difficult, because there’s only so much I can make up in a real city like Seattle, with characters having real careers in real life and death situations. So here are five ways I kept it fresh with ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE. Cynthia Nichols, the heroine of the story, is a big, beautiful woman. Yes, she’s big by society’s conventions. But she’s not a cliché. Cyn is not a hot mess. She’s a strong, independent, successful woman. And like all women, she has insecurities about her looks and relationships. I loved making Cyn confident yet needing what the hero gives her—true love. An Italian family—in Seattle. I’m part Italian, and I grew up in the Northeast where it was pretty easy to spot my peeps. (Think Jersey Shore, only with normal people.) Then I moved out West, and I swear, I’ve never seen more Scandinavians in my life! So I wanted to give my characters some of my background. The…

Erika Kelly is best known for her sexy Rock Star Romance series, but in October she launches a brand new series about hot and bothered brothers. Back in April Fresh Fiction critic Miranda Owen chatted with Kelly about her Rock Star Romance series, her favorite rock bands, and whether she plans to come back to band books in the future. Miranda Owen: What inspired you to write about a rock band? Erika Kelly: It’s funny because I’m originally from Los Angeles, which means I spent the first half of my life in the entertainment industry. And yet I’ve never written a book set in that world. I didn’t set out to write a rocker book. I was more interested in writing about a bad boy. I liked the idea of supremely hot, talented, charismatic man who was perfectly unattainable. Women could offer their bodies, men could offer their companionship, but no one would breach the wall he’d erected around his heart. And the idea that one woman–the one and only woman–could inspire such lust and need and yearning and desire that he’d bust through all this barriers to win her. That was my starting point. The setting came after, when…

How will I be celebrating the release of THE REBEL HEIR? Well, pull up a chair and I’ll tell you. I’m a fan of special occasions, confetti, parties, and all the happy things in life. So do I take the opportunity to toss some glitter in the air in the name of a new book? Yes. Yes I do. There are many quiet days in an author’s life, but book release day isn’t one of them. Release day is a time to celebrate the sleepless nights and long days of work that led to the point of a beautiful book sitting on a shelf in a store, waiting to be read. The smell of the ink on paper! The shiny cover! A new story ready to be discovered by readers everywhere! Isn’t it glorious?! Beginning with the release of my debut novel, I’ve had a tradition. I would go to my local bookstore, and with coffee in hand, I’d smile at my new release while I sipped my grande skinny vanilla latte. Then I’d take far too many selfies with my book, pictures of my book with other books, pictures of my book arranged on the shelf just so… Perhaps…

Hello to everyone at Fresh Fiction today! I’m so glad to be here for a visit with all y’all today. It was absolutely wonderful to see you guys in California at the RWA Conference this past summer. At that time the release of A COWBOY CHRISTMAS MIRACLE seemed so far away but it’s on the shelves now. With each book in this series, it became more and more difficult to create something the readers liked as well as the previous book. As the books found their way to the shelves, I kept wondering how on earth I’d end a feud that had been going on for a hundred years between the Brennans and the Gallaghers. Then in ONE TEXAS COWBOY TOO MANY someone wondered aloud what would happen if a Gallagher fell in love with a Brennan. I’d never written a Romeo and Juliet story but as Declan and Betsy talked to me (yes, I hear voices and they tell me the most wonderful stories) it all started to come together. Betsy wanted to make her cousin happy with a Christmas play at the church. Declan needed to win a bet he made with Betsy’s cousin. My eyes misted when…

This is a question I am often asked. As I begin a new book I always seek out a gorgeous, hot guy, from actors to male models, to inspire me and help me create my hero. Liev Dragunov, the hero of TO BLACKMAIL A DI SIONE was no different. What was different in this case was that I wrote the story as part of The Billionaire’s Legacy and was given character details and story outline. When I read about Liev, a very famous and very hot male actor came instantly to mind as inspiration. Daniel Craig, especially in Casino Royale, was that male actor. The powerful determination he exudes in that movie and the subsequent 007 movies was exactly what I envisaged Liev needing. So in my mind the James Bond of Casino Royale infused with all I knew about Liev Dragunov to become exactly the right kind of hero to match Bianca Di Sione’s frostiness. Liev has a score to settle, or rather revenge to seek. He lost his mother and father when he was a young boy after the collapse of his father’s business. The young Liev, alone in the world, found himself in many difficult situations as…

Rogue of the Moors (Samhain Publishing) was released August 31. This will be my fifteenth full-length novel. I thought it would be interesting to share how I plot a story. I hope you find this useful! Cynthia Breeding Facts: 350 page novel= 90,000 words=20 chapters=4/5 scenes (3-5 pages long). Need: 20 index cards (5” by 8”) Label each card upper right corner with “Chapter One”, “Chapter Two” etc. Top Line: write out the main purpose for this chapter (what is it about?) Every 3rd line: write “Scene One”, “Scene Two” etc. Jot down what action will take place in each scene. Use only one character’s Point-of-View (POV) in each scene. Analysis Situation: What is the problem/conflict going to be? When/where does it take place? Main Character/Protagonist: Goal: How is he/she going to fix the problem? Barriers to fixing problem: Internal/personal barriers (either physical or emotional) External barriers (people, nature, supernatural) Antagonist (outside force): Purpose: What motivation to keep protagonist from reaching goal? Action: What will the antagonist do to keep protagonist from being successful? Sub-plots: (secondary story-line that interconnects with main plot/characters—optional inclusion) Black Moment: When protagonist appears about to lose everything Ending: How will story conclude? Example: CAMELOT’S DESTINY…

For those of you who love a good love story SUNRISE CROSSING is the book for you. I’d plan to write two stories, both based on the idea that sometimes the perfect mate for someone isn’t who they think it might be. But, then, another couple came along. Maybe because I love reading happy endings, but this book was so fun to write. I believe in love, the kind that lasts a lifetime. My grandfather met my grandmother at a barn raising. She was fifteen and he was seventeen. They wrote letters back and forth for a year, then the next spring he drove a buckboard back to her place and married her that day. They were married 64 years and their children say they never saw them argue. It may not always work out that way in real life, but I like to think it should in fiction. When a reader picks up one of my books, I want them to feel like they’ve walked into a town and lived there for a while. And when they turn the last page and close the book, I want them to smile and know they’ll be welcome back for another visit…

I partially wrote this book with dictation software while lying on my back. My wonderful husband, Mr. Amazing, figured out a way to project my monitor onto the ceiling, I could see what I was doing and make corrections as I went along. I’ve just been waiting for someone to say, “See? We always knew you’d make your living on your back.” Peer pressure “forced me” to leave the country to research parts of this book. A year ago, my daughter and I took a trip to Ireland. What did peer pressure have to do with it? I mentioned, jokingly, on my Facebook fan page that I needed to go to Ireland to research my Irish dragons. Well, wouldn’t you know my wonderful fans started to chant, “Do it! Do it! Do it!” It was practically a dare. I mentioned it to my daughter, and she said, “That’s next on my bucket list!” Suddenly, we were planning our trip. I learned what it takes to become a Boston firefighter. My two main characters are both going after that job. Because one of my characters was from Ireland, I had to start at the very beginning. A Boston firefighter has to…

Check out the latest books on Fresh Fiction Box Not to Miss! This Month’s Print Books: Every box included 3 of these! The Sheikh’s Baby Scandal by Carol Marinelli Dark Whispers by Debra Webb Without Warning by Lynette Eason The Cottage on Pumpkin and Vine by Kate Angell, Jennifer Dawson, and Sharla Lovelace Meant to be Mine by Lisa Marie Perry Change of Heart by Nicole Jacquelyn Everfair by Nisi Shawl My Fair Princess by Vanessa Kelly An Untimely Frost by Penny Richards   This Month’s eBooks: Every box included all 4! Top Shelf by Kelly Jamieson Betrayal Foretold by Jen Crane A Novel Death by Ellie Ashe and Elizabeth Ashby Girl on the Run by Daryl Wood Gerber Vixen’s Tale: Every month, until June 2017, each box will showcase a new adventure featuring our mascot, Vixen. The tale is illustrated with a collectible postcard and button set. Vixen’s Tale #4 – Lasso Me, Cowgirl, a Western Romance Tired from the pressures of her executive life, Vixen desires the simplicity of the west. Her friends convince her to take a vacation at a Dude Ranch before throwing her life away. But when she meets the hunky ranch fox, she decides…