Even before I started writing A WEEKEND OF MISBEHAVING, I was always drawn to the nanny/boss trope. Okay. I admit it. I watched one too many episodes of The Nanny growing up. Then, of course, there are fabulous classics like The Sound of Music and Mary Poppins—despite the nanny not snatching the guy on the latter, she was still the focal point of the movie/Broadway musical. Recently, hot celebrities like Ben Affleck and Gavin Rossdale were rumored to have cheated on their respective wives because of a hot affair with their nannies. Those marriages ended up in divorce. Coincidence? Maybe. The fact is, whether they are perceived in the media as the life-saving creatures who can bring warmth and assistance to a busy family, or the sexy females with a hidden agenda (hello, The Hand that Rocks the Cradle!) nannies are interesting characters to write. Why? Because they are living and/or working for a different family. This family has rules, baggage, and a past. The nanny is able to watch them, and learn from them, teach them, and at the same time question her own ideas and values. It’s really a fascinating interaction. Here’s a teaser from A WEEKEND OF…

Tune to the Hallmark Movies and Mysteries Channel on Sunday, January 10th, 2016 to watch THREE Hannah Swensen movies, back-to-back! Sunday January 10th, 2016 from 5 PM to 7 PM EST Murder She Baked: A Chocolate Chip Cookie Mystery then . . . from 7 PM to 9 PM EST Murder She Baked: A Plum Pudding Mystery then . . . the icing on the cake . . from 9 PM to 11 PM EST The World Broadcast Premier of Murder She Baked: A Peach Cobbler Mystery Come spend the night with Hannah, solving mysteries and munching cookies. Jo says, “Ladies, start your ovens!” For more about Jo Fluke and Hannah Swensen visit her Website

My first book sale was practically a fluke. I’d spent years writing two manuscripts that I loved with a passion. I found an agent. I had interested publishers. And while I waited for editors to make their final decision, I noticed a new publisher was looking for Christian romance stories set in small towns with cute names. To submit, all I had to do was write three chapters and a synopsis. I did it in a day, sent it to my agent, and forgot about it. My agent called with good news. I was so excited. Except the good news wasn’t about the manuscripts I’d spent years on. It was for a book I hadn’t even written yet. A sale was a sale. I’d take it. I pulled out my synopsis to remind myself what I’d be writing about. Ha! It included a chubby, unicycle-riding twelve-year-old named after Superman’s father. Writing that story was going to be fun. Except before I finished writing the book, my husband of ten years left me. And I had to write a romance novel while my own marriage fell apart. I never wanted to write romance again. And besides the Costco book-signing in 2010…

And How My Story Extended Hers Lately, I’ve been having some challenging conversations with a friend concerning the ongoing inspiration I find in what my parents told me (many years ago now) about their own lives—particularly their lives before my existence. “You have your own experiences, your own perspective, not to mention your own vivid imagination,” my friend says. “Why do you feel the need to carry the burden of your parents’ stories? Are you setting aside your own material, better, more immediate material, trying to keep them alive?” Her questions have left me shaken. They’ve made me reflect again on that frequent question: where do your ideas come from as a writer? And, yes, for me, some of those ideas have been influenced by the stories my parents told me, and the stories my parents didn’t tell me—the ones I only learned after my mother’s passing (she died when I was fourteen years old, and was a notably reserved woman before that time). The ones I only learned from others who knew her, in so many ways, better than I ever got the chance. My dad, the verbose one in our little family of three, was a fabulous storyteller—a…

Since I am not a vampire, I had to enlist the help of the hero and heroine from “The Good, the Bad, and the Vampire”. Trixie LaRoux is a punk rock badass who was turned in 1980 in NYC. Turned in the 1950’s, Dakota Shelton is a good old boy from Texas and he feels more than a little out of place with Trixie’s city slicker coven. So here’s the good, the bad, and the fabulous of being a vamp…as told from Trixie and Dakota’s perspective. Trixie LaRoux The Good— No wrinkles: I may not be a fashonista or anything but looking like I’m in my twenties—forever—doesn’t suck. A girl likes to look nice. The Bad—No suntans: In my human life, I wasn’t a big beach-goer or anything but it was nice to have the option. I mean, I can go to the beach but it, like, has to be a night. It’s cool but…I kinda miss the warmth of the sun on my face. The Fabulous—Resilience and Strength: My body and mind are tougher as a vamp than they ever were when I was human. Sometimes I wonder if it’s because I’m an immortal…or if it’s because of my…

About SEIZED Danger is all around her What should have been a routine investigation for FBI profiler Evelyn Baine turns ominous when she’s kidnapped by a dangerous cult of survivalists. As her worst nightmares become a reality, she begins to question what she’s seeing. Because the longer she’s inside their compound, the more she realizes this group is not what it seems to be. The next terrorist threat is right beside her As the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team closes in, Evelyn suspects she’s stumbled onto an emerging terrorist threat —and a cult leader who has a score to settle with the FBI. If Hostage Rescue breaches the compound, Evelyn’s dead for sure. If they don’t, the cult may unleash a surprise attack that could leave the whole country shattered. Buy SEIZED: 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 “Suspenseful from the start and intriguing throughout. Recommended!” – #1 New York Times bestselling author Lee Child on SEIZED “Elizabeth Heiter does her research, and it shows in this superb FBI thriller. With a ripped-from-the-headlines plot and excellent…

Meet Thomas Locke, author of MERCHANT OF ALYSS the second book in the Legends of the Realm series. Set in a world where magic has been outlawed for centuries, Hyam learns there is more than he knew or suspected. Q: How did you get interested in writing epic fantasy and techno-thrillers? Thomas Locke: My first passion as a childhood reader was science fiction and fantasy. So many of these stories imparted a sense of the heroic. The challenges were massive, the vistas beyond the scope of normal life. The characters rose up to become what was required in order to vanquish the threat. When I started writing at age twenty-eight, my first mentor was Arthur C. Clarke, author of 2001: A Space Odyssey. I want to take readers back to the type of story that meant so much to me as I was growing up. Q: Many fantasy and sci-fi stories are dark and hopeless. What do you hope readers glean from Merchant of Alyss that they won’t find in most mainstream fiction? Thomas Locke: I suspect there are a lot of readers out there like me, who buy and love mainstream fiction but are dismayed by how dark it…

Ready for a sneak peek at the upcoming book from Rachel Blaufeld? Well, here’s a glimpse at the cover … …and the back cover as well! So be sure to add DOLCE to your GoodReads Shelf or just go ahead and pre-order today! Giveaway What do you think about the cover of DOLCE? FIVE lucky commenters will win their choice from Rachel’s current collection! About Rachel Blaufeld The Unofficial 411: First and foremost, I consider myself a reader. With my nose forever stuck in a book and most recently, my iPad, I always wanted to write! Now I do, and the best part is connecting with readers and chatting. I wish there were more hours in the day for this— Officially: Rachel Blaufeld is a bestselling Coming of Age, Romantic Suspense, and Sports Romance author. A recent poll of her readers described her as insightful, generous, articulate, and spunky. Originally a social worker, Rachel creates broken yet redeeming characters. She’s been known to turn up the angst like cranking up the heat in the dead of winter. Turning her focus on her sometimes wild-and-crazy creative side, it only took Rachel two decades to do exactly what she wanted to do—write…

Well, I hate to disappoint, but I can’t say my answer is very exciting. I’m not a big ‘celebration’ type person. I’m more than happy to spend birthdays and anniversaries at home (as long as there’s cake), and to treat most days like any other. Being the center of attention isn’t exactly the most comfortable place for me—that’s why I’m a writer and not, say, a singer. (Well, that and I can’t carry a tune to save my life). But, that doesn’t mean release days aren’t special! It’s always exciting when a book you’ve worked so hard on is finally available for people to buy and read. So usually at least part of the day is spent sharing some excerpts and talking about the book on social media, trying not to continuously inundate people with my excitement over the book FINALLY being here. Because, by the time a book is out on shelves, it does feel like finally. I probably first came up with the book idea over a year prior, wrote it and edited at least six months before it makes its way to shelves. So, it’s always kind of a miracle to get to that place where it’s…

I am sitting at my (brand new!) computer for the first time in a week. Everyone has left from the holiday and it took me an hour to re-assemble my writing space from where I’d thrown things to hide them from company. I still don’t know where the new book outline is, but that’s okay. I wasn’t using it anyway. My cat is in blissful, purring heaven as she reestablishes her dominion over our house. She spent the entire holiday hiding from the dogs. We think she was under my bed, but my husband also saw her wedged into a corner behind furniture and a curtain. Amazing how tiny a space my chunky kitty managed to wedge herself into. But all is done. Company (and all dogs!) are gone. Guess what I’m feeling. Exhausted. I will sleep for a week and then think about taking a shower. Confused. Who bought all this food that is now living in my refrigerator? And who is going to eat it? Blissful. The house is quiet again except for happy cat purrs. Why did I ever think I wanted 18 people here for Christmas? Terrified. I haven’t looked at my email in a week….