As a kid, my family always had pets. Dogs, cats, a goat, a pig, ducks we called Salt and Pepper, a rabbit… you name it, I think we probably had it. Maybe that’s why animals appear in all my books. It’s hard to imagine not having a pet of some sort. One particular dog stands out. Her name was Queenie, and she adopted us. I was eight or nine years old, and one day while playing outside, this little black and white dog trotted up to me. We later learned she was a purebred Boston terrier, but that day she was just a dog that wanted to play. She didn’t have a collar, and we’d never seen her around the neighborhood before, but she seemed well-taken care of. Our dad said not to get attached to her as she obviously belonged to someone. Ha! We were already attached to her. We named her Queenie and as far as she was concerned, we kids (there were four of us) belonged to her. If one of us got in trouble with our dad and got a stern talking to, Queenie would go to a corner of the room, turn her back to…

Think about all your favorite authors, and I bet the attribute they have in common is their willingness to put everything on the page. They have authentic voices, tell stories of unique, yet relatable characters who are challenged by a set of circumstances that, though they might not be yours, you could imagine what you’d do if life threw that curve ball. To put that kind of story on paper, you have to be wired in a particular way. This fact was taught to me by my kind, talented, incredibly smart daughter. A couple years ago (she was about sixteen), my daughter was asked to give a talk about mothers for a Mother’s Day event. She was nervous, but game. I spent all week looking forward to her magnificent dissertation on the glories of motherhood, using me, of course, as her shining example. I was very careful not to pressure her, not to even admit I was looking forward to this opus. Normally, as the writer in the family, I’d offer to edit the speech, but not this time. I wanted to be surprised, to hear it as a piece of performance art. My anticipation wasn’t giddy, but rather measured….

When I was in first grade, my mom made me a black cat costume for Halloween. It involved sewing a hood with cat ears and a tail onto one of my black leotards from dance class and a cat mask with a thin piece of elastic that ran went around the back of my head. I loved that costume. If memory serves, I wanted to wear the costume post-Halloween, because everybody wants to be a cat. Right? Since then there were gypsies and hobos and Indians. In college there was Marilyn Monroe, Cher, and the 80s-specific year I dressed as my Swatch Watch. I enjoy coming up with costume ideas as much as I enjoy wearing them which brings up a lot of questions about my identity. I’ve discovered that, when it comes to costumes, people fall into two camps: those who love them and those who don’t. There isn’t a lot of gray area. Being the former, I’ve wondered about the latter. Is it the trouble of putting together a specific look? Or have they only experienced uncomfortable costumes? Is the silliness of dressing as someone else off-putting? Or did they just not care about getting candy on Halloween?…

October is my favorite month in San Diego. The summer visitors and horse race crowds have gone home, leaving the beaches almost empty and relieving the traffic on the highways. Thanks to all the back-to-school sales, I’ve overfilled my file cabinet with cheap office supplies. The weather has become what everyone expects from Southern California – low 70s during the day and 60s at night. I only wish the days weren’t so short! I rely on walks on the beach to generate ideas and solve problems for my books. There’s something about walking in the sand and listening to the waves that makes my brain work better. I used to carry a digital recorder to take down ideas – in some ways it’s almost like a dream state and I’d easily forget the great plot idea that cleared my current red herring – but now I rely on my cell phone so I can take notes and keep going. Of course, one of the best parts of October is Halloween! Is there a better holiday than Halloween for a store that combines chocolate and books? In BEHIND CHOCOLATE BARS, chocolatier Michelle Serrano and book store owner Erica Russell are preparing…

Don’t you just love a spunky, confident and capable heroine? I sure do. When my husband returned from a white water rafting trip with a friend, he showed me the video and was so impressed with one of the river guides who was a woman. I have to admit, I was intrigued enough that my brain started moving toward a scenario of a heroine as a river guide. What would she be like? Why would she love the river and white water rafting so much? So I dug deep to find out. In TORRENTS OF DESTRUCTION, Katie Gallagher is the middle child, sandwiched between two brothers. She loves her brothers deeply, even if they tend to bicker back and forth as many siblings do. Their father died and left them the family business—the river rafting guide service. Their mother disappeared and that’s a bone of contention between Katie and her brothers in that they believe their mother met with foul play and is dead while Katie believes her mother abandoned them. Although this core difference of belief could rip them apart, the Gallagher siblings rely on their love for one another and sense of responsibility. As I learned more about…

I’m excited to be here on Fresh Fiction, one of my favorite websites. I’m also excited to tell you about my new book, Seducing the Marquess. In order to do that, I decided to step aside and let my characters tell you a little bit about themselves, and how they got into the mess that is their love story. First I present to you, Richard, Marquess of Devon. “Hello everyone, Lord Devon here. This is a bit awkward for me since I’ve never appeared on a website before. I hope to tell you a bit about myself because my author insisted. She threatened to take away my happily ever after if I didn’t make this appearance, so here we are, old chap. “First of all, I must tell you I never planned on having the type of marriage I ended up with. Who needs all the mess and entanglement of love? Well, it turned out I needed it. But my dear wife, Eugenia, went about it in such a bizarre way that we almost lost each other. You see, she found this little book that . . . . Well, maybe I should let her tell you about it.” (He…

When I received feedback from the early readers of my book, THE BROKEN TRAIL, I was prepared for all sorts of questions. It’s a contemporary romance and it deals with some pretty deep stuff so I was braced for anything, but not for the one I got the most often. No, that question was “Can I get the recipe for that tomato pie she makes?” There’s a lot of food in the book since Katherine, the main character, enjoys baking and in her hectic life hadn’t had time for it. Stuck in a small town in Maine she’s finally got time on her hands and she uses it to make apple pies, vegetable soup, bread, and on her very first night there, homemade cocoa though that turns out to be a bit of a mess. Out of all of those culinary delights, the tomato pie always stands out so I thought I’d share it here. Although considered a southern creation, I make it when my New England garden is right at the end of the season, giving up the last of the big, ripe tomatoes. Katherine’s Tomato Pie One pie dough – (I cheat and use the kind you buy…

Let us journey to Regency Era England for a Christmastide celebration. When the House of Commons recessed around December 20th for the Christmas holiday and Boxing Day (the day following Christmas Day), the ton flocked to their country estates for holiday parties with few remaining in London. The holiday celebration lasted twelve days, ending around January 6th, and was a time of many festivities and days spent with family. Unlike today, in Regency and Victorian times, holiday decorations were hung on Christmas Eve; including holly, ivy, and mistletoe. Sprigs of mistletoe were hung generously throughout a dwelling, and couples were called to hug or kiss below it for continued good luck in the upcoming year. The Yule Log was lit and kept burning through the twelve days. Most attended a Christian Mass on Christmas morning before returning home for a dinner of roasted goose or turkey—or even boar’s head—with sides of vegetables and stuffing for the fowl. There were also desserts; including Christmas plum puddings and mince pies. With their food eaten and dessert long past, family would sit before the Yule Log, though Christmas carols are historically named as a Victorian tradition, many families would gather to tell stories…

Sneak Peek at MAKING WAVES by Laura Moore A woman who runs an elite concierge service in the sun-drenched Hamptons finds her life changing unexpectedly when she hooks up with one of her clients—a magnetic business tycoon—in the debut of a series for fans of Julie James and Tracy Brogan. Beach Lane Women’s Fiction | Romance Contemporary [Ballantine, On Sale: April 25, 2017, Trade Size / e-Book, ISBN: 9780425284827 / eISBN: 9780425284834] Pre-order MAKING WAVES: Amazon.com | Kindle | BN.com | iTunes/iBooks | Kobo | Google Play | Powell’s Books | Books-A-Million | Indiebound | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | Amazon DE | Amazon FR About Laura Moore Contemporary romance author Laura Moore began writing while pursuing a graduate degree in art education. Her first story filled an entire notebook when she realized that she might actually have penned a love story that others would enjoy reading. Ride a Dark Horse, which was begun in a dog-eared, coffee-stained notebook, was published a year later. An accomplished rider and horse lover, Laura lives in Providence, RI, with her husband, two children, and their black lab. One of her great thrills as a writer is to hear from readers. Rosewood Trilogy…

We’re not too scared, our spider watching over the table. Beloved book that got us addicted to her series! Appetizers to get us in the mood, the wine is hidden (LOL) Sam knows how to set the mood. It’s the great pumpkin pasta night! Last book in The Realm Enforcers series Last book in Scorpius Syndrome series.