Upcoming Events

September 8, I'll be joining other Texas Authors for a signing, reading, and discussion about books and ebooks at Borders South Park Meadows, 9500 South IH 35 Service Road, South Park Meadows Shopping Complex, Austin, TX 78748 from 1-5 PM.

On September 26, from 5-7 PM, I'll be participating in my first solo book signing event at The Twig in San Antonio.

If you're in the area, I'd love to meet you!

Every Word Counts

Every word counts, every line matters. In writing, I can look at the same sentence for what seems like hours, trying to make it work. Trying to make it fresh.

In today's world, that's what's important. Freshness. Fresh, strong writing. Oomph. But how do you do it? How do you turn a simple sentence into something so heartbreaking, or lyrical, or so intense that the reader does not and will not put it down?

It takes time. And patience. And there are those days you're going to feel like giving it up. I want to shout it out to the world how hard writing is when they think it's simple to put words to paper. Anyone can write. See Jane run. But not everyone can write good.

Am I good enough? There are some days I don't think so. Some days when every sentence in every paragraph starts with she was. Some days I don't believe I can get up, go to a job I am not happy with, and come home to attempt to write, and to stare at another blank page. How can I make my characters feel anything when I myself feel so robotic?

Bear with me. I'm feeling melancholy today. But I will be empowered. I will continue to write, no matter how many times I question my sanity.

Anxiously Awaiting Sandra Brown

It's almost here...the release of Sandra Brown's new novel, PLAY DIRTY. Now I LOVE to read and I have many authors I buy, even authors I'd put in my favorite authors list, but Sandra Brown is one of the only authors I actually wait for and get excited about.

I'm not a crazed fan, by any means, but I look up to Sandra Brown. She's a mentor of mine, and I've never even met her or exchanged words with her. She's also an enigma, and someone I would love to invite over for dinner (as long as I don't have to cook).

On or about August 12, don't expect me to do much. I've pre-ordered it, so I probably won't get it in the mail for a week after, but it's a day or two, or however long it takes (which won't be long), of no writing, no reading anything else, maybe no cooking. Because truly, Sandra Brown is my favorite author of all time.

Naturally, I want to follow in her footsteps. I hope one day that someone out there will anxiously await my next book. I read and read her stories to get it finished, to see what happens next, but I hate finishing it, because then the story is over for me. Have you ever read something, then had a hard time getting into another story, because it was so well written that everything else paled in comparison?

Sandra Brown is one of the reasons I decided romantic suspense was my passion, and not contemporary romance. I love her style, her voice, her stories, and as each year passes, they get edgier and edgier. She can describe something in a way nobody else can. She releases ONE a year, and though it's hard to wait, it's worth every moment.

Her characters are true to life, imperfect people. I just love them.

Who's your favorite author? One that you just can't get enough of? Do you have one in particular that you admire?

X Games, Jake Brown, Travis Pastrana, Etc.

Every year, my husband and I watch the X Games---four days worth. Thank God for Tivo, right? If you don't know what X Games is, it is an accumulation of extreme sports such as skateboarding, Moto X, BMX and rally racing. Best Trick, Big Air, etc. etc.

I don't partake in extreme sports, but I'm a huge fan (and of course, I have my favorites). My third novel actually mentions, somewhat, extreme sporting and one day I hope to write more about it.

I was enthralled Thursday night when the skateboarding big air was in process. Jake Brown fell 45 feet, his shoes exploded from his feet, and I'm sure a lot of people, including me, thought he was dead. I prayed as I watched and finally, he stood and walked off the stage. God bless you, Jake Brown! We're glad you're safe.

It was a good show this year, but I was disappointed in the end...the rally race with Pastrana and Foust. I'm a huge fan of Pastrana (and the Subaru WRX, as I have one, LOL), and I didn't think Pastrana should have been disqualified. After all, look at the course. They were so close, it's almost inevitable that someone is going to run into someone else. IMO, you don't get on the course if you don't expect your car to be damaged. Would it have been different if they weren't side by side? But that's what I love about Travis Pastrana, he goes out with joy and no hard feelings. That, my friends, is called charisma, and he has it in spades. He's happy to be there, no matter what, and truly enjoys what he does. More athletes should learn from him (instead of pouting when things don't go their way).

Let's see...four days worth of X Games and there's a lot to talk about. Last year when we saw Pastrana do the double back-flip in Moto X, I feared things would only get crazier. After all, how can you top that? But it seems these athletes always push themselves. I did miss the 900 in skateboarding this year, but as usual, I'm glad everyone is safe.

Congrats to all the winners, and to those who did not win, congratulations. Because you succeeded in making it to X Games and attempting your best.

I've been interviewed

If you want to know more about me, my books and my writing style, hop over to Love Romances and More.

You can also find a different interview here.

And a new press article out at Oh My News International.

Kathleen Woodiwiss

I wanted to write a memoriam for Kathleen Woodiwiss, who was a big influence on my reading and writing romance. I'm sorry I'm late with this, but I've been on vacation.

Her novels are the first I remember reading. I've read novels before, but hers stuck with me so much that I remember, and still own many of them to this day. My mom loved her books, thus I started reading them at a very young age, 500 page novels when I was a wee child, LOL.

She's one of the reasons I've learned how important reading is. Not just as entertainment, but as a means to help develop and maintain our brains. I love nothing more than to see people reading, especially a child. It's never too early or too late to enjoy reading and/or writing, if that's your desire.

I'm saddened by this news, and my heart goes out to her family. I am grateful for all the things she has done to make romance what it is. Thank you, Kathleen E. Woodiwiss!

Funny Cat

I'm sorry I haven't blogged much lately. I meant to post a happy July 4th, I meant to tell you about this or that, but honestly I've been very VERY busy, so I just haven't had time. It's summer, there's always something going on (mowing every day for one, LOL) and my novel is almost ready for submission, so I've been tweaking it to get it finished.

To make up for it, I wanted to share some silly pictures of my cat, Riley. She loves to lay in the silliest places...

June?

I can't believe June is almost over.

I'm still here, sorry I haven't blogged much, but I have been so busy. Every time I want to try to start a schedule, I just can't. Maybe one day...

I have redone my website, and am in the works right now with someone on getting a personalized banner made, which is very cool. For now, you can check out my new website here I'd love to know what you think.

Happy Anniversary!

Today is my 13th wedding anniversary, and it is about the same time I signed my first publishing contract one year ago. So I have a lot to celebrate!

I'd like to offer advice on how my husband and I have lasted for 13 years when we married so young, but the only advice I can give is to give 100%. It's not a 50/50 split, but 100/100. There will be days he'll give less of himself and vice versa, but in the long run give 100% and don't hold grudges.

Another important factor is friendship. You must be friends in your relationship or, in my opinion, you don't have a relationship. I've gone to car shows and monster truck events because he enjoyed it, and I ended up enjoying it, too. He's done the same thing for me. But it's also important to find something you both enjoy and do it together. I hate to see marriages where the couple goes out with their friends to have fun, but they don't go out with their spouse. It's important to be friends with the love of your life, or how can you like each other?

Anyway, that's my advice for relationships. Simple, really.

Happy Weekend and Happy Father's Day!

It's the weekend and I couldn't be more excited! Not that I have any big plans, but at least I don't have to go to work.

Not only is it the weekend, but it's Father's Day weekend. I'm helping my dad move. My dad mostly reads western novels and his initial reaction to hearing about my "romance" writing was "does somebody get killed?" I replied "yes", he said "Okay, I'll read it." ROFL.

My dad...he's a good guy. Funny, quirky, grouchy at times, still maintains a sense of humor after all the hell he's had in life. I lost my mom many years ago, still think of her all the time, but Mother's Day is usually just "another day". But even if it's just a phone call, be sure to let your dad know you love him.

I love you, Dad!

Writing "The Scene"

I’m at a juncture in my current WIP with a problem that has never arisen before now.

Now that I’m published with two novels, you’d think "these" scenes would be easier for me. They’re not. They’re harder.

When I wrote my two novels, I was unpublished, so I never thought about who might read them. Now that I'm published and I know certain family members do read my books, I feel like I'm bringing them into the bedroom with my characters. Okay, maybe not that bad, but all I can think about is... 'what will "they" think'?'

I know the proper thing to do with a love scene is not to think about who may be reading it, but that's easier said than done. I also have to wonder if it just shouldn't be happening now. I wrote a pretty sizzling one a few months ago for this novel that occurs later in the book, so maybe it's just not time yet. (Yes, I write my scenes like a filmmaker would film their movies, and piece them together later).

Still, I wrote that "scorcher" when I was still newly published, and hadn't talked to family yet. Now that I know they're reading them...

LOL.

I've written and rewritten drafts where the movements are stilted, and the breathy sighs get old. My verbs seemed to have stopped at "pull, push, stepped back and smoothed."

You ever have this problem? How do you get over it?

Roller Coaster Ride

To me, writing is a roller coaster ride of emotions. One moment I’m feeling high and rising higher, and the next I’m plunging into despair. Writing is a love/hate relationship. I love to write, but it is the hardest, most frustrating thing I’ve ever done. Why do I do it?

A lot of my frustration is that I’d rather be writing…when working, when gardening, when doing lots of things I’m doing. Then I sit down to write and it’s hard to focus. Sometimes I have thoughts churning through my mind so much that I can’t get a clear grasp of them. That’s when it’s time to take a step back. Meditative yoga and deep breathing helps a lot when I get this way. Just trying to stretch and breathe brings my mind back into focus.

But so does writing. Writing anything.

I like to read, but sometimes I need to get away from words, and I’ve found that to be true even more so lately. I think it’s because I’m surrounded by words. My full time job has nothing to do with writing, but it’s still nothing but words. This case, that case, that notation, this data (word data) I have to enter, that document I have to type up. I’m always around words.

That’s where the yoga comes in handy (I haven't done it near enough lately), but I’ve also taken up coloring. I used to enjoy coloring but stopped, until my niece (now five) sat down and colored with me on the floor for hours. Now I go to the store and buy new coloring books purported to be for her, when I’m really buying them for myself.

Sudoku is also a good release. Sudoku is all about numbers, so it’s a nice break from words and traditional crosswords.

Long walk with nature is by far the best thing, in my opinion, to calm my mind, especially this time of year, but unless I intentionally clear my mind, I still have things running rampant through it.

I love music, and music is always a good release, but I’ve found I don’t listen to it as much anymore. I think it must be because it’s just more words, and then a song will get stuck in my head and I’ll have even more jumbled thoughts dancing around in there, LOL.

The more jumbled my thoughts are, the harder it is for me to write. What do you do when you need to focus?

The Life of My Cat...

Here I am, trying to clean house...sweep, mop, vacuum, wash clothes and mow the lawn, plus I still have to get to the grocery store...things I can no longer put off...and this is what my cat is doing...

Scheduling

Wow, where has the time gone? Tomorrow is the last day of May. I had so many plans for the year, and it's almost half over.

I've been stuck on a WIP (my current work-in-progress), and it's important that I get it done (if only for my benefit). I keep thinking everything is great and then suddenly, it isn't so good. Why can't I always stay in that perfect muse where words just form cohesively, coherently, and with almost no will at all?

I'm a pantster, so I start with one blank page at a time, though I plan to at least outline my next novel. (Probably isn't going to happen, though).

As far as blogs go...I just can't seem to stick with any schedule and how in the world can boring ol' me find something fun to talk about? I'd love some ideas!

I have this "brainstorming" book I thought about blogging about, but I haven't even used it. I'm supposed to do it once a day, but I can't (got too many other things going on).

So what's your schedule like? What is your blog schedule like? What types of blogs do you prefer to read? What types of blogs do you think are exciting? What do you gravitate to?

It's time to revamp mine, but I'm not promising anything right now...

SARA conference

I am still excited about the SARA conference I attended yesterday. I met a lot of interesting people, including my publisher...Rhonda and RJ. They are so cool and genuine, exactly as I thought they would be. I wish I could post a picture of them posing with me, but I forgot my camera. I packed it in my bag but forgot to grab it because I was running late and afraid I would be the last one there. Ack!

I got an autographed copy of a book from Rhonda and a couple other WRP authors and I met Tamra, the cover artist who created the cover for ONE WRONG MOVE. How cool is that? Here's the cover she created:

Excerpt: Beginning of ONE WRONG MOVE

Camden Alexander squinted against the onslaught of salt water striking his face. He smacked his lips closed and gritted his teeth against the sand lodging in his gums.

Salt and sand. He was beginning to hate it.

He slithered one hand in front of him, slowly, carefully, feeling his way around the marshy dunes.

Something was wrong. Tension ran like brambles along his spine, lashing the back of his neck. The clammy heat stuck to his skin and clothing like epoxy, and not even a fresh spray of ocean air could help dissipate the goo.

No, this ocean air was putrid. Dead fish. Dead seagulls. Swarms of mosquitoes. This wasn’t the section of ocean displayed in the traveler’s brochures.

Moonlight drifted across the water. Camden used the glow that beamed across the water as his flare, keeping him grounded as he trudged on his knees through sand and cacti, praying. If Web caught him here, what would he say? How could he explain this?

He couldn’t explain it. That’s why he couldn’t be found.

"Camden," his earbud cackled. His heartbeat quickened, his nerves already chaotic. He stopped, crouching lower, as if anyone else could hear the voice in his head.

"I'm here," Camden whispered.

“Where?” Moore’s voice was edged in tension. Moore, who was back at the command post. Safe, sound and secure.

“I lost sight of Web. Where’s our backup?”

Static. Camden jiggled the earbud. Nothing.

The unmistakable smell of death struck him. Like rancid meat left out too long, or the smell of vomit festering after a week in the hot sun. Camden couldn't see. He lost sight of the moon behind a thick row of clouds and the burrow of weeds he hid in.

He put one hand in front of the other. Moved his knee, felt around on the ground. He searched for his gun and breathed a sigh of relief when he found it.

Not that it’d help him much with the mess he was in.

He butted up against something squishy and smelly.

The clouds shifted, revealing a sky full of twinkling stars and translucent beauty. It should have been a time to kick back with a woman and bask in the afterglow of love. A time to relish the warmer days of summer, run down the beach and dive into the cool splash of water, or eat cold watermelon with a frosted mug of brew.

The body on the ground was anything but beautiful.

Agent Bill Fletcher was dead.

BUY ONE WRONG MOVE NOW!

Cause for Celebration!

I just checked my word count, and I only have a little over 20,000 more words to go if I stop at the maximum preferred Wild Rose Press count. I still have a few chapters to complete; I’m not at the end yet. I have additional scenes to piece together in the chapters I’ve written, and A LOT of revisions and additions to make. All in all, 20K words shouldn’t be so hard to come by, and here I was thinking I wasn’t very far into it at all.

I’ve gotten lost in this story, which is a good thing. That’s exactly what I want my readers to feel. When things are going well for me, they go very well, but this story has been hard where I go through moments of panic thinking I can’t finish it, but then I go through moments where I feel it’s the best thing I’ve ever written.

I AM going to finish this novel, and I’m learning something along the way. Don’t push it when the words won’t come, but don’t sit and wait for them to come. Sit down and write, and usually (hopefully) it’ll happen. Yay! Don’t you writers love this feeling?

This one has also been harder because of the research. I’ll be writing and suddenly, I get to a point that requires further research and I just get stuck.

I know some writers who’d have 20K words in a day or at least a week, and I’m not one of those people, mostly because I don’t have the time. I write when I can but, unfortunately, it doesn’t happen everyday like I know it “should”. But guess what? I’m not using “should”s anymore. I am using “able”s. I should write everyday, but I am not able, so I will write whenever possible and not beat myself up over it.

I “should” fold my clothes that I washed this weekend but guess what? I’m not doing that either, because then I wouldn’t be “able” to write right now, LOL. Writing comes first (okay, second to family and unfortunately, a paying job). Food, then dishes then clothes, LOL. I won’t worry about the grass…it’s not yet up to my knees.

Loneliness

I feel like I haven't smiled for days. Between the stress of work and trying to write, I feel a little, okay a lot overwhelmed. Writing is a lonely profession even if it isn't your main profession. Sometimes I want to give up, but I never will because that would be silly, especially after coming this far. But I can't help but wonder...do other writers feel like me? Lost and alone at times, as if there is no one else out there. I live in a small town, can't make it to RWA meetings, and my only writing friendships have been formed online. I'll be at a conference in a couple of weeks where... finally!...I'll be meeting fellow writers in person!

Sometimes I feel like nobody cares, like nobody knows me, and I know it's a long process to get "noticed" but I like things to happen NOW! (Must be the Aquarius in me). I felt a little better yesterday when a family member asked me when my next book comes out. :)

My husband has a job opportunity where we will move to a much bigger town, one with more opportunities for me, and I'm really excited about it, but I have to let him make the decision on whether or not to do it. And I'm afraid he won't, because it's a new and scary experience for us both, and there's certain things he doesn't like about it. So I can't be selfish, even though it's what I want.

Sorry for the melancholy post. I'm trying to poke my head out of my cave and grab some sunshine. I think being "stuck" (in a cave, on my story, in my promotions) is starting to affect me.

On a happier note...Spiderman 3 is out today and I'm a HUGE fan! Can't wait to see it!

In My Cave

I'm in my dark and lonesome cave, getting some writing done, and I thought I'd poke my head out a moment and say hello!

Love is a Mystery

That’s basically the quote I use for my romance and I want to share a story with you on why I believe love is a mystery.

My friend leads a normal life. She’s beautiful, single, works full time and has a fear of relationships because of past relationships that had gone sour. She’s young and somewhat ready to find someone, but it has to be the right one.

She has found someone she really likes, and he likes her too it seems, but they are taking their time, which is a good thing. She’s told me some things that keep her wall up and I tell her she has to let go of past bitterness so that it doesn’t make her just that…bitter. Embrace each new relationship as if it were your first, no matter how difficult.

That’s what I love about love. It takes time to develop, like a flower bud blooming then opening on a warm, spring day. You don’t automatically know someone the first time you meet, though you’ll make assumptions right away. If they cast all their problems out immediately, knocked their walls down so each of them knew what they were getting, then they probably would never work out. The best kind of love is slow love, IMO, even if the chemistry is immediate, especially if the chemistry is immediate, LOL.

Of course, real life romance doesn’t seem to work out they way they do in novels. People don’t always like to tear down their walls and would rather remain untrusting and single for fear of pain. He’s leaving soon for something he has to do, and it may be awhile for them to see each other again. If I were writing this novel, of course, I’d find a way to make it work, but we don’t always do that in real life, do we?

Ahh…the mystery of love. It’s not always the external conflict, the who-done-it or the how-are-we-going-to-solve-this? It’s the internal conflict, the not wanting to get hurt again conflict. I love to write about romance and I just love to hear about real life romance and I wish my friend the best of luck in her romance!