My current release, Colton 911: Family Under Fire, is a Christmas romantic suspense story. And who doesn’t enjoy a little romance in their lives at Christmas? With that in mind, wanted to share my top 5 romantic Christmas films with you. Bridget Jones’s Diary Bridget Jones is an average woman struggling against her age, her weight, her job, her lack of a man, and her many imperfections. As a New Year’s Resolution, Bridget decides to take control of her life, starting by keeping a diary in which she will always tell the complete truth. The fireworks begin when her charming though disreputable boss takes an interest in the quirky Miss Jones. Thrown into the mix are Bridget’s band of slightly eccentric friends and a rather disagreeable acquaintance who Bridget cannot seem to stop running into or help finding quietly attractive. Love, Actually Love, Actually is often named as one of the best Christmas movies and, as its name suggests, it’s also one of the most romantic. The movie is a series of vignettes about several different people that seemingly have no connection to one another, although by the end the connections are finally all present and accounted for. There’s a…

My latest release, COLTON’S SECRET BODYGUARD , is a romantic suspense, and writing in that genre is a unique balance between the love story and the thriller. It’s great to have this opportunity to share my thoughts and experiences about what makes a good romantic suspense. For me it’s all about tension. I suppose, before I started writing romantic suspense, I had a vague idea that it was a romance with a mystery thrown in. I couldn’t have been more wrong. A real romantic suspense is a blend of the two. There must be a developing relationship between the hero and heroine, but there must also be a powerful thriller. Unusually for a romance, the outside tension is just as important as the emotional and sexual tension. As an author, the challenge is to ensure that both are carefully crafted and equally balanced. The mystery and its conclusion must be as visible, believable, and important as the romance. It is not the story of two lovers who happen to be in danger. The mystery impacts on their romance and shapes them as a couple until they emerge changed, by their emotional journey and the danger to which they have been…

I read and write other genres of romance, but paranormal calls me back time after time. I do write about werewolves and vampires, but my romances feature other paranormal races as well. Faeries, elves, dryads, necromancers, phantoms even gods and demons. Paranormal romances are as varied as contemporary or historical romances. They feature equally damaged and diverse characters. They are not just about fangs and fur. They can be steamy or sweet, dark and angsty, or quirky and funny. Readers of paranormal romance know what they like. Many of them started reading this genre because they like vampires or werewolves and they still have a preference for their first choice. They may stray and read mermaid or unicorn stories, but they will return to their favorite themes. Just as readers of contemporary romance will know if they prefer billionaires or firefighters and historical romance readers will know if their preference is for regency rakes, pillaging Vikings, or kilted Highlanders. I think it’s precisely because paranormal takes us away to a fantasy world that it appeals to us so deeply. Fairy tales captured us as children (and as adults). I still read fairy tales, they are just darker now. Wouldn’t the…