Monday Mayhem – I challenge you…A challenge revised

I’ve created a reading challenge for us to start in the new year!

As some of you may know, I’m named for my grandmother, Margaret (famous for hula dancing with Don Ho at the Polynesian Palace).

They called her Grady, and there was little Grady loved more than a good game of BINGO. Don’t get me wrong, Lawrence Welk and Miller High Life (the champagne of bottle beers) were right up there, but Grady loved to play some bingo.

So, I thought in 2018, we could play some book bingo!

You in? Click to download this PDF version of the game card, and play along. I’ll make only one rule and a vague promise:

Rule: the book must be read in 2018. No counting previously read material.

Promise: The first person to BINGO will get a bookish prize. The first to cover their card will get an even better bookish prize.

Sound like fun? Start scouring your TBR lists!

ETA: I realized that Something Sporty was on there twice. I created an alternative grid if people want something…less sporty…click here. But, if you want to stick with the original, you can read both Love Game and Play For Keeps and have them covered! Just sayin’…

Monday Mayhem – If this writing thing doesn’t work out

It’s my birthday week! Yay!

Okay, it doesn’t really mean much other than I get to use it as an excuse to eat stuff and say, “Hey, it’s my birthday week!” but I plan to use it.

In case you were looking for an update on our trip to New York City, Julie Evelyn Joyce covered it here. It’s pretty comprehensive and I really don’t have much to add, since she ganked most of my pictures for it. So much fun.

Fodder got me a special present for my birthday. Apparently, I’m hard to shop for when it comes to anything beyond and Amazon gift card (and I really don’t understand why he feels compelled to go beyond them, but anyhoo…), but he came across something on eBay and knew I had to have it.

He was right.

Meet my 1976 Smith Corona Super G, Ghia

She’s a super sporty portable manual brought to life by Karmann Ghia designers Alejandro do Tomaso and Tom Tjaarda. Not only is she in great working condition, but she is still sleek and beautiful. Even the carrying case is racy!

So, yeah, if this novelist bit doesn’t pan out, I can always fall back on writing poetry in parks, like we saw last weekend.

I just need to brush up on my poetry skills…and stop rhyming things with Nantucket…

Have a great week, everyone. Eat cake and blame it on me!

Oh! And I’m participating in a multi-author contest this week! Join me, Brinda Berry, Juno Rushdan, and Aliza Mann for a chance to win prizes from each author and be entered to win a $50 amazon gift card!

 

 

Monday Mayhem: Uhhhh

So, yeah. In the last two weeks I’ve completed revisions on one manuscript, approved and completed copyedits on two others, added 15k to my WIP via dictation, and there’s a galley to proof in my inbox.

Yes, it’s safe to say I’ve hit the Kahn level of tired.

So I’m taking the rest of July off. Yep, a whole day.

In the meantime, I have this to keep you entertained:

Lyrical Press is so excited about my upcoming Play Dates series, they are doing a special pre-release giveaway on Goodreads. You can enter to win here: http://bit.ly/2tPeJpg

Oh! And don’t forget to join my Facebook reader group, The Margaritas, if you haven’t already. I haven’t be slaving away on a whole bunch of nothing, you know. There’s going to be some good stuff coming up!

 

 

Monday Mayhem – Another first

I had my first day at the new job this week. I think I’ll let this picture speak for itself.

No, the fountain is not in my office.

Yes, it is free.

No, I haven’t figured out how to get my mouth under there without getting a Coke Zero in my eye, but hey, dreams do come true!

Rather than bore you with the details of the first week on the job, I thought we’d play a little game of firsts, then I’d introduce you to an author who is celebrating her first release this week!

**giveaway alert**

Thanks to all who chimed in last week. Congratulations, Michelle Kelly, I’ll be sending a signed copy of LOVE & ROCKETS out to you!

This week, play along and I’ll give one winner the choice of any book from my Maggie Wells digital backlist, or a signed print copy of the first book I ever wrote, CONTENTMENT. 

Here are the questions and my answers. Copy and paste into the comments, then replace my answers with yours. Ready?

  1. First job with a paycheck: Mr. Quick Hamburgers – my uniform was brown double-knit polyester.
  2. First celebrity crush: I think Donny Osmond edged Barry Manilow out as the first, but it was close.
  3. Title of the first book you remember choosing for yourself: ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET. I’ll let you guess why I picked it.
  4. Your first set of car keys unlocked a: 1976 Ford LTD Country Squire station wagon.
  5. First album you bought with your own money: Queen – A Night at the Opera
  6. First thing you eat most mornings: Yogurt
  7. How old were you the first time you got drunk/tipsy: 18-ish. I was a freshman in college, so I may have still been 17.
  8. Where did you have your first kiss: In the back of the Musicland store at College Hills Mall.
  9. The name of your first pet or first furry friend: We had toy poodles when I was born. Sisters named May and Gay. Sweet girls.
  10. The first street you lived on was: Washington

****

Tomorrow, one of my fellow Kensington/Lyrical authors, Kari Lemor, will know the thrill of seeing her work out there in the world. Hard to top that for a first… Please take a moment to check out this bit from WILD CARD UNDERCOVER. Congratulations, Kari!

All that glitters in Miami is not gold . . .

Lured in by a bad ex-boyfriend and the moonlight of Miami, Meg O’Hara is trapped in a nightmare situation, waiting tables for a crime boss and fearing for her life. When undercover FBI agent Christopher Shaunessy offers her a way out, she seizes it. Getting the goods on Salazar Moreno might not be easy, but she’ll do anything to be freed from her servitude and Moreno’s sexual advances, even if it means moving in with the charismatic agent.

Chris Shaunessy pretends to be Meg’s lover in order to keep her safe, but he steels his heart against further involvement. Passion has no place in the sordid world of organized crime. And yet, the closer they get to cracking the case, the stronger his feelings for the spirited waitress shine. It’s a dangerous game he’s playing, and taking Meg in his arms for real could prove a fatal misstep . . .

Excerpt:

“Does that man never have a day off?” Margaret Kathleen O’Hara grumbled, grabbing her tote bag and sarong to move surreptitiously along the chairs by the pool. If the hotel manager saw her here again she’d be toast. He’d more than toss her out. Threats to call the police had been thrown at her for months now. Although in her case, that might be a better deal.

With her eyes trained on his location and the Miami sun beating down on her exposed skin, Meg backed along the water’s edge attempting to leave the area before he spotted her. She needed to shower the chlorine out of her tangled hair and change for work soon. He looked in her direction and she rushed behind the closest object. It was six-foot-plus of blond-haired gorgeousness. The man’s eyes were glued to something on the upper deck. Her boss was sitting there with one of his expensive bimbos. Did Blondie like that type? Maybe he wouldn’t notice her little game of .

She leaned around him, ducking back when she saw the Pool Nazi still present. Getting caught was not an option. She already owed more than she could ever repay.

“Are you okay?” Forest green eyes stared down at her, puzzled. Would he buy that she was simply looking for shade? He was big enough to provide it.

With strong hands, he reached for her shoulders and Meg reflexively batted them away. She got enough of people groping her at work. Scorching curses froze before erupting from her mouth as the hotel manager moved, staring in their direction. Her mind kicked into overdrive, scrambling for a way to hide in plain sight.

“Sorry,” she squeaked. Grabbing the man’s head, she planted her mouth solidly on his. Short, thick strands of hair tickled her fingers. Firm lips yielded no resistance to the increased pressure of her mouth. Better make this look good.

An electric current skittered over her skin causing her heart to race. Maybe too good? Slowly he pulled her closer with his muscular arms. Her eyes flew open and she broke the connection. His hair-covered chest was too close for comfort. And much too tempting. Distance, she needed distance.

Her eyes darted around, seeing no signs of the manager. A sigh escaped. Time to make her exit as well.

“Sorry,” she mumbled again, looking up. Big mistake. The stranger’s curious eyes captivated her. They were soft and tender and filled with something she could…trust? If she still had any of that left in her. His hands were gentle as they held her. A tiny smile played about the full lips she’d brazenly kissed. She couldn’t believe she’d done it. Her mother would be appalled. But it had worked.

The chlorine scent from the pool faded into the background as sweat and suntan lotion wafted off the man’s damp skin. Her stomach did cartwheels followed by a few back flips. Dangerous.

“Let me go,” she hissed as reality returned. She gave a swift shove at his well-defined pectorals, rushing to get past, to escape from this distraction and the possibility of being caught. Her head whipped around at the sound of a splash and water droplets from behind. Gorgeous was just breaking the surface of the pool. Had she pushed him that hard?

“Oops.” No time for apologies. He looked like the forgiving type. She had to blow this joint before the Pool Nazi came back. Grabbing her fallen sarong, she ran across the deck to hustle inside the luxury hotel.

“Damn.”

The manager stood sentry near the front door. A crowd appeared at her back making that way impossible. The stairwell to the left would have to do. She’d go up a few floors then down to the side entrance. She wrapped her sarong around her as she carried out her plan to avoid being seen…and caught.

Meg should stop coming here to use the pool: this proved it. Sneaking in was adding to her already hellish life but swimming always helped work out the stress and the pool here was more accessible than any other on the strip. Pretending she had money to stay in a place like this, rubbing elbows with all the beautiful people, yeah, that got her through too. She’d learned the best times to come and not be seen. Well, for the most part. It was well worth the risk to get away from her dump of a room and its enchanting neighborhood. She’d leave this all behind her soon. She kept telling herself that. Had to believe it for her own sanity.

Footsteps behind her pushed those thoughts away. Her bare feet padded silently along the lushly carpeted hallway. Heart racing, she ducked into the ice machine alcove, her sigh echoing in the silence. She glanced down. Her bag? She must have dropped it as she rushed off. How had she not realized? It couldn’t have been the threat of being arrested. Or the crooked smile of the handsome stranger she’d kissed. The one with the kind eyes and gentle hands. No, she couldn’t allow herself to be led astray by a pretty face. Not again.

She continued down the hall, her trip cut short when someone grabbed her by the arm and spun her around.

* * * *

Buy it now!

Follow Kari Lemor on her website:  http://www.karilemor.com/

FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/Karilemorauthor/

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/karilemor

Pinterest:  https://www.pinterest.com/karilemor/

Good reads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9756283.Kari_Lemor

 

Monday Mayhem – I’m conflicted

One of the cornerstones of writing any type of fiction is the need for conflict. At the start of every project, writers ask themselves at least two very basic questions:

What does our hero/heroine want most?

What is standing in their way?

Obviously, we delve deeper into the opposing forces as we move forward with a book, but those are the bare-bones basics. Internal and external forces are equally important, but require a different approach. This is where I stumble over one piece of oft-repeated writing advice.

We’re often told to imagine that ultimate goal, and then throw obstacle after obstacle into the path our protagonist has to take to get there.

Warning: Unpopular Opinion Ahead

I think there are times when an author can insert too much conflict into a story. As a matter of fact, I just read a book where it was literally one thing after another, page after page. No downtime. No breather. For me or the heroine. Nothing but one supposedly funny/sad/mortifying moment stepping on the heels of the one in front of it.

After the first few hits, I stopped buying in.

I know it’s fiction, but no one’s life is that non-stop. I mean, at some point, someone has to have a bio break, right? I’m telling you I would have locked myself in a filthy gas station bathroom and never come out if I were that poor heroine.

Warning: Unpopular Opinion #2 Coming At You

The other night, Jewels was talking about the big grovel scene in books… You know the kind, the one where one character does something so unthinkable that the only way they can possibly be forgiven is if they are willing to completely prostrate themselves at the other’s feet.

Yeah, I’m not a fan.

It’s not that I don’t want or appreciate a decent grovel as much as the next girl, it’s just that I don’t think they happen all that often in real life. Therefore, the whole set-up-overblown conflict/grand gesture/grovel comes off a bit too Hollywood for me.

I’m not saying a little groveling can’t take place. But, in my experience, there’s more awkward silence after a big blow-up than grandiloquent speechifying. I’d even go so far as to say that once we get past the oh-so-dramatic adolescent stage, most conflict is resolved with less than a paragraph’s worth of words.

And forgiveness doesn’t usually come with the big prize, but rather a small gesture.

Internal conflict usually plays a big part in my novels. Sure, I add a dash of external to turn up the heat a bit, but to me the story comes from the inside out, not the outside in.

Authors are frequently told to torment their characters, but I don’t. I figure they’re better at tormenting themselves than I will ever be. I just try to capture it all and put it on the page.

How about you? Are you a fan of the grovel? Has anyone ever hit you with a grand gesture. Tell your tale, and I might be inclined to give away a signed copy of Love & Rockets in celebration of this week’s exoplanet discovery!

Oh! And there’s a newsletter hitting inboxes tomorrow. If you aren’t on my list, sign up at the top of the sidebar >>

Monday Mayhem – A positively Gilmorian giveaway

Tomorrow! Tomorrow! I’ll LOVE & ROCKETS ya, tomorrow! It’s only a day away!

Love and rockets_final

Can’t wait for you to get to know Darla and Jake better!

In the meantime, I am still toiling away at the NaNoWriMo goals. I’m up to date and should finish on time. I have to admit, it’s been hard this year. The day job is super busy. As you know, there’s some birthday-ing going on around here (Fodder’s is tomorrow! Tomorrow! I’ll Love & Rockets him tomorrow!), there’s Thanksgiving on Thursday, and the year’s most anticipated event on Friday.

No, I’m not talking about Black Friday.

No, not even thinking about the (so-called) Battleline Rivalry game between Arkansas and Mizzou.

I’m talking Gilmore, and you know I am talking fast.

That’s right, this Friday, my pal Lulu and I will be snuggled in on my sofa with a smorgasbord of junk food, ready to live a year in the life with our beloved friends from Stars Hollow.

I CANNOT WAIT!

To celebrate, I’ll offer a little prize. Comment on this post with your favorite line from Gilmore Girls (any episode, any season, any character) and I’ll draw one name for a signed copy of LOVE & ROCKETS.

Did I mention that Darla is a spunky single mom of a brainy teenaged daughter? No? Yeah, well, you know how it is….

Now go forth and comment! I’ll pick a winner Friday, November 25th!

Happy New Year!

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The Winner of The Last First Date and Lisa Fox’s fabulous One Kiss is:

Lindsay Cross!

Congratulations, Lindsay and thank you all for stopping by to check out my new blog. I hope to have more fun and giveaways for you all in 2015!

 

Harlequin-E Contemporary Boxed Set (Volume 2) GIVEAWAY!

We are less than 2 weeks away from the release of the Harlequin-E Contemporary Boxed Set (Volume 2) and we’re giving it away! This fabulous four book set will be available June 2, 2014 and we can’t wait!

9781460336274-COV

This set includes my story, The Last First Date – whoo hoo!

HARLEQUINe_0614_9781460323854_TheLastFirstDate

Go here to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway.

Be sure to add the boxed set to your Want To Read shelf on Goodreads.

The boxed set is available for pre-order now at Harlequin, Amazon, B&N, & Kobo!

HarlequinLogo

Monday Mayhem – I have something to say

And that something is THANK YOU!

Thanks to YOU, I am officially an Amazon bestselling author! Squeeee!

You all have been so awesome about helping to spread the word about UNFORGETTABLE HEROES and my fellow authors and I truly appreciate your support. So much so that I have a little something for you.

A $10 Amazon gift card!

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Just comment below and tell me what you’ve been reading lately. It’s that simple. I’ll draw the name of one winner on Sunday, March 16, 2014.

Book giveaway!

WholeLotOfLove

I’m participating in the Whole Lot of Love Giveaway sponsored by ArkansasAuthors.com!

Enter to win books from:

Adrienne Thompson – eBook copy of Your Love Is King

Amy Matayo – winner’s choice of either an eBook or an autographed print copy of The Wedding Game

Cynthia D’Alba – Three eBooks of Texas Two Step: The Prequel (short story) and One eBook of Texas Two Step (1 copy to 1 winner)

Keri Ford – one eBook of Rough Ride (The Roughnecks, 1)

Lynda Kaye Frazier – winner’s choice of either an eBook or an autographed print copy of Rescued from the Dark

Maggie Wells – St. Blaise bundle (3 titles to 1 winner): Jumping Mr. January, February’s Fling, March Madness and a Love Letters bundle (2 titles to 1 winner) Love Letters Volume 1: Obeying Desire, Love Letters Volume 2: Duty to Please

Margaret Ethridge – eBook of Long Distance Love (1 copy to 1 winner) and Commitment (1 copy to 1 winner)

Mary Frances Hodges – an autographed print copy of Miss Mary Margaret. Book II

Rebekah Beene – an autographed print copy of Oh Beloved! Live in the Light of His Word

Richard Emmel – an autographed print copy of Louisa

Shannon Vannatter – an autographed print copy of Rodeo Hero and Rodeo Queen (1 copy to 1 winner)

Velda Brotherton – eBook of Images In Scarlet  

Enter now!