Hello again to all the Fresh Fiction readers! It sure is a pleasure to be back here, and I’m looking forward to hearing from all the kind people that I remember! I put together a simple cheat-sheet for writers about eighteenth century clothing, and I thought it might not only be a good guide for writers researching the era, but also a bit of fun for readers who love history (although you may want to note the changes I made because of the fantasy aspect of my world). So without further ado, here’s how you might go about undressing my hero, General Dominic Raikes, from my upcoming release The Fire Lord’s Lover 1. Shoes: First, let’s get Dominic comfortable be removing his shoes or boots. Like the women, men wore heeled shoes similar to our modern day clogs where you slip your foot in, but mostly of black with large buckles. The toes started out square, and went round by 1740. Pumps had low heels. I prefer my hero to wear boots, however, and many a military man wore them to a ball. I prefer the half jackboots, which ended below the knee in a turned-down top, made of leather….

The fourth book in my Feral Warrior shape-shifter series, RAPTURE UNTAMED, hits shelves today! Meanwhile, book five is off to the copyeditor and book six is staring back at me like a wide blank screen. Actually…it’s not. Which is one of the best things about writing a connected series of books. If I were simply starting a new book, an unconnected book, the sky would be the limit. And I very well might be staring at a blank screen, trying to decide what to write about, who to write about, the time period, the place, the people. But I’m writing book six. I already know most of the characters, I know the setting, the place and time, the secondary characters, the over-arching conflict. All that has been set-up in previous books. The Feral Warriors series isn’t simply a collection of romances set in the same world. It’s one big story with a beginning, a middle, and (eventually) an end. As I start working on each new book, I first look at where the story ended in the previous book. I’m not writing a new story so much as a new chapter of an on-going story. A chapter with a new…

Women who accept nontraditional roles and succeed with dynamic outcomes are the heroines in my novels. These are Glock-totin‘ gals with southern charm who understand grits aren’t just for breakfast. These women embrace their femininity with an added boost–they aren’t afraid to go after the bad guys or say they love Jesus. This style of heroine understands her peace can be more about the caliber of the piece in her purse than the state of her spiritual life. What makes a contemporary woman choose a career that has the potential of ending her life? Experts often point to personality differences or a “risk-gene” as an explanation why some are risk takers and others are content in less stressful lifestyles. I prefer courageous heroines who’ve been wired with a few more endorphins to balance the adrenaline, and they thrive on it. If my heroine races down a dirt road on a Harley in the dead of night, or scales a cliff while someone is shooting at her, or stuffs a weapon into the waistband of her jeans, it’s to get the edge on the bad guys. My heroines are not satisfied unless they are placing their lives on the line to…

What makes a hero unforgettable? The answer to that question is no doubt different for each of us. We all have a certain idea of what we’re looking for, and of course no one guy is going to have every quality we’re seeking. However, romance heroes have to be a step above. They have to transcend our every expectation. Nick Cappuano in Fatal Affair is the man. Tall, handsome, smooth, elegant, smart, sarcastic, neat (to a fault), sexy, thoughtful, persistent, and (this is very important in Washington) well connected. By the time we finished work on the book, my editor Jessica were both in love with him, and kinda fighting over him if the true be told. I adore him. I flat out love him. I want him for my very own (but please don’t tell my husband that!). Nick is the kind of character who becomes so real, so tangible, that I find it hard to believe he’s not really out there moving and shaking on Capitol Hill. I’ve spelled out some of Nick’s finer qualities above, but there’s another fine quality that reviewers have pointed out more than once: Nick is not afraid to apologize when he’s wrong….

Ever since romance novels first hit the market decades ago, they have always been the Rodney Dangerfield of fiction…as in “No respect.” Why is that, do you think? The same people who dismiss romance novels as ‘porn for women’ are the same people who will go to the movies to see films like Pretty Woman, a classic romance novel if ever there was one. And they don’t see the similarity between the movie they are raving about and the books they disparage. Well, I feel sorry for those people, because they are missing out on something wonderful. Some speculate that the reason romance is looked down upon by so many is because it is genre written by women for women. But I believe this is the very reason why it is so popular. Aside from those naysayers who would pooh-pooh our beloved genre, there is no denying that romance novels are a billion dollar business. And who does the bulk of purchasing in our country? Women. What do women want to read? Spy thrillers? Grisley murder mysteries or true crime? Maybe. Women tend to have varied tastes. I know I can curl up with a romantic Susan Meier Harlequin Romance…

Here I am, on a cruise ship sailing across the Atlantic without a bit of land anywhere in sight. That pretty much describes exactly where I was when I started to plot THE DEVIL SHE KNOWS – adrift without anywhere to place my hero. Usually we think of a hero – or heroine – as being firmly planted in a single place. Where would Arthur be without Camelot? D’Arcy must have his Pemberly in PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, right? How could Harry Dresden live anywhere but Chicago in Jim Butcher’s THE DRESDEN FILES? I, for one, refuse to imagine Sookie Stackhouse living anywhere but Louisiana. Now put yourself in my shoes. I knew THE DEVIL SHE KNOWS was going to be about Gareth Lowell. After all, he told me at the end of THE IRISH DEVIL that I had to write a book about him. I just nodded and said, yeah, right, mister, you’re maybe eighteen years old, you’ve got some growing up to do before you’ve got enough angst to be interesting… Boy, was I wrong! Gareth reminded me he was still waiting during three more books. He only kept his mouth shut during KISSES LIKE A DEVIL because that…

I’m a big fan of the teacher Socrates–you know, the Ancient Greek philosopher who had to drink poison hemlock because he drove everyone crazy through his constant questioning. Socrates never wrote anything, but his student, Plato, attributes these words to Socrates: Writing shares a strange feature with painting. The offsprings of painting stand there as if they were alive, but if anyone asks them anything, they remain most solemnly silent. The same is true of written words. You’d think they were speaking as if they had some understanding, but if you question anything that has been said because you want to learn more, it continues to signify just that very same thing forever. Phaedrus 275 d-e The enduring value of a good book lies in the questions it raises rather than those it seeks to answer. Books contain ideas that act as seeds that can take root in a fertile mind. To Sell Without Selling Out On the road to publication, I’ve frequently asked myself if I should write what sells–give the people what they want–or should there be a higher purpose to my writing, a value that endures and engages the hearts and minds of my readers? Can I…

Last Saturday was our annual Boas and Tiaras Tea, and if you follow our musings you’ll know we posted a recap and link to Felicia’s blog about the event. I’ll wait if you need to go catch up. In the meantime, it was fun to reminisce about it. There are over 50 pictures you can check out on our Meetup.com page. We filled the room with readers, I got rid of a couple of boxes of books (ha!) and we meet old friends and new friends. But now, I’ve put away my tiara (gasp) until either next year or the next “big” event! We did miss several of our members and also has had people say, why didn’t you tell me about it? It’s hard to judge with the effectiveness of getting the word out, but we try really hard. SO I thought I’d tell YOU all now, next year’s big event, the Boas & Tiaras Tea will be held on Saturday, June 11th, 2011. It will be held somewhere with high tea, chocolate, scones and champagne! Promise! And no long walking in the heat (had to promise that after last year’s tea in the Arboretum, we’re precious flowers, ya…

Thank you, FreshFiction, for inviting me to be a guest on your blog! My 19th novel, The Lies We Told, is out this month and I thought you might enjoy a peek behind the scenes at how my significant other, photographer John Pagliuca, and I created the book trailer for it. Book trailers are hard to make. Movie trailers are easy (by comparison) because movies are visual and you can simply take carefully selected scenes from the film. You don’t have that luxury with books. It’s tempting in making a book trailer to try to interpret the story literally, using narrative either typed on the screen or in a voice over. She was beautiful and good hearted. (Cue image of beautiful, good-hearted woman). Until the night He appeared. (Image of scary looking but very handsome dude. With a couple of tattoos. Nice ones). On that night (Image of dark night, clouds drifting across a crescent moon) her young brother disappeared. (Image of young boy slowly fading to black). Okay, they’re not all that cheesy, but you get the idea. They’re a challenge to do well. I like my two previous trailers for Before the Storm and its sequel, Secrets She…