Is there a doctor in the house?

This month brings the release of Montana Doctor, the second in my Saddlers Prairie miniseries.

I set the miniseries in a small ranching town. Then why a story featuring a doctor instead of a rancher? Great question!

I come from a long line of doctors–my maternal grandfather, my uncle and my dad. Both of my brothers are also physicians. At one time I thought I wanted to be a doctor, too. I was on a waiting list for med school when–surprise!–I discovered I was pregnant. At the time, my husband and I had only been married three months. The pregnancy put an end to my dream of med school–at least for the foreseeable future. I never did go to medical school, instead earned my MBA in business.

But somehow my dream transferred onto that surprise baby. From the time she was five, she said she wanted to be a doctor. Now she is a family practice doctor who also delivers babies.

Needless to say, my family served as a great resource for this book.

Back to career dreams. My mother always wanted to be a published author. She wrote plays and had several produced, but never sold a novel. Somehow I took on her dream and made it a reality for myself.

Mom and me, myself and my daughter–I see a pattern, and it makes me wonder. Did your dreams get passed onto someone else in your family? I would love to know.

Until next month and looking forward to reading your own stories about your dreams,

Ann

www.annroth.net

Great news! Recently I sold two more books for the series. I’m having so much fun writing about the characters in Saddlers Prairie that I want it to go on for a long time.

MAY WINNER!!!

CONGRATULATIONS Laney4! You’re the May winner. To receive your free autographed books please contact Ann Roth and Trish Milburn through their Web sites.

To enter the contest simply leave a blog comment and your name will go into the drawing. Simple and painless. And FREE BOOKS.

And I'm still learning...

Last month, my younger son graduated from the University of Arizona with a master's degree in education (his undergraduate degree was in biology). Since he’s decided he doesn’t want to teach, he faces more than the usual challenges in searching for a job in Tucson.

Even though he’s finished his classroom learning, he’s now getting an education in the school of life.

During May, I had my own learning experience. You may recall that I tried an experiment, offering my novel By Leaps and Bounds free on Amazon for three days. I’d revised and updated the previously published romance about an injured ballerina falling in love with a police detective.

I hoped for a few thousand free downloads, rewarding my readers and possibly gaining some new ones. What I got—hold on—were 38,000 downloads. The book hit Number One on Amazon’s free contemporary romance bestseller list, and Number Three on the overall free bestseller list (they also have paid bestseller lists, of course). I was stunned.

Of course, I don’t get paid for these, so how did it shake out for the rest of the month? Sales of the book increased dramatically, as did sales of Old Dreams, New Dreams, which is previewed at the end. Also, some new readers published positive reviews of the book on Amazon, which helps sales. (The single negative was a one-star review because it wasn’t “fine literature.” Well, duh.)

Of the free downloads, about 2,500 were in the UK. Previously, of my self-published books, only my Regency romances were selling there. Since the experiment, By Leaps and Bounds has been moving on a par with the Regencies, and some of my other contemporaries are selling as well.

I don’t see the sales figures on my Safe Harbor Medical series, since those are reported to Harlequin. However, a reader in Ireland emailed to say she’d just discovered the series and is posting her positive reviews on Goodreads. So that might be a result.

Will I do this again? Probably, although I don’t plan to give away books very often. Still, I’ll keep this in mind as a possibility.

In the meantime, I’m joining a group of self-published authors in reducing some ebooks to 99 cents on Amazon and Barnes & Noble for a special summer stock-up promotion June 8-22. Six of my titles will be included: A Lady’s Point of View (Regency), Unlikely Partners (romantic comedy), Capers and Rainbows (romantic comedy), Touch Me in the Dark (paranormal romantic thriller), Danger Music (mystery) and Echoes (paranormal thriller).

What else did I do in May? In addition to teaching and revising another previously published book I plan to reissue soon, I finished writing the tenth book in the Safe Harbor miniseries. Can I go take a nap now?

Visit Jacqueline Diamond's website

This blog is for the birds

It's nesting season for bald eagles so I'm back to one of my favorite pasttimes - watching nest cams. For several years I was an avid follower of the Hornby Island eagles, but that cam has been taken off-line. This year I've switched my attention to the White Rock Eagle cams. This nest has two web cams: a close-up cam that offers a great view of all the activity in the nest and a wide-angle cam that includes a stunning view of the nest and of Boundary Bay, south of Vancouver, BC. I nabbed this screen cap from the wide-angle cam this morning, while both parents were away from the nest.

This year the White Rock eagles have two eaglets that viewers have affectionately named Echo and Foxy. A couple of weeks ago, to everyone's amusement, one of the parents brought a stuffed toy animal into the nest. Here's a screen shot with one of the parents providing some shade for the eaglets. You can see Stuffie at 10 o'clock.

Stuffie has been moved around in the nest bowl but he's still there. It's hard not to anthropomorphize about the parent's reason for bringing the toy into the nest, or how sweet it is when one of the eaglets is snuggled up on it!

Happy eagle watching!

Until next time,
Lee
The Daddy Project (Dec. '12)
www.LeeMcKenzie.com

Etta Place

This month at All My Heroes are Cowboys, I've blogged about one of my all-time favorite movies, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969).  Since today at my blog I'm featuring the Sundance Kid, I thought Etta Place, the notorious woman who hung out with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, deserved her own blog appearance.

Photo Credit

Life with the Sundance Kid

According to a Pinkerton Detective Agency memorandum dated July 29, 1902, she was "said.....to be from Texas," and in another Pinkerton document dated 1906, she is described as being "27 to 28 years old", placing her birth around 1878. This is confirmed by a hospital staff record from Denver, where she received treatment in May 1902, which reports her age as "23 or 24," (therefore again, c.1878).

Even her real name is a mystery; Place was the maiden surname of the mother of the Sundance Kid, Harry Alonzo Longabaugh.  Longabaugh's mother, Annie Place, is recorded in various sources as Mrs. Harry Longabaugh or Mrs. Harry A. Place. The one instance where she is known to have signed her name, she recorded it as "Mrs. Ethel Place." The Pinkertons called her "Ethel", "Ethal", "Eva" and "Rita" before finally settling on "Etta" for their wanted posters.  It has been suggested that her name became "Etta" after she moved to South America, where Spanish speakers could not pronounce "Ethel".

Actress Katherine Ross

Photo Credit

In February 1901, Etta Place accompanied Longabaugh, whom she may or may not have married, to New York City, where at Tiffany's jewelers they purchased a lapel watch and stickpin and where at a studio in Union Square on Broadway she posed with him for the now famous DeYoung portrait, one of only two known images of her.

Photo Credit

The mysteries of Etta Place

Those who had met Place claimed that the first thing they noticed about her was that she was strikingly pretty, with a very nice smile, and that she was cordial and refined, but an excellent shot with a rifle. She was said to have spoken in an educated manner, and she indicated that she was originally from the East Coast, although she never revealed an exact location.

Photo Credit

Eyewitnesses indicated years afterward that Place was one of only five women known to have ever been allowed into the Wild Bunch hideout at Robbers Roost in southern Utah, the other four having been Will Carver's girlfriend Josie Bassett who also was involved with Parker for a time, Josie's sister and Parker's longtime girlfriend Ann Bassett, Elzy Lay's 's girlfriend Maude Davis, and gang member Laura Bullion.

There have also been claims that Place was first the lover of Parker, becoming involved with Longabaugh later, and that she met them both while working in a brothel as a prostitute. Both of those claims are possible, as members of the Wild Bunch gang often alternated girlfriends.

Photo Credit

In the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Etta Place is depicted as a schoolteacher and played by actress Katherine Ross.  Hop over to All My Heroes are Cowboys to learn about a interesting trivia fact that happened to Katherine during the shooting of the movie.

Photo Credit

So who was your favorite outlaw in the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid—Butch Cassidy (Paul Newman) or the Sundance Kid (Robert Redford)?  Cast your vote at All My Heroes are Cowboys. (Look for the poll in the sidebar of my blog)

Photo Credit

Happy Ever After...The Cowboy Way!

Marin Thomas

Arizona Cowboy Rodeo Rebels (Feb 2012)

A Cowboy's Duty Rodeo Rebels (Aug 2012)

Beau: Cowboy Protector Harts of the Rodeo-Born to Ride! (Nov 2012)

www.marinthomas.com

Spring Flowers

Hi all.  First, I'd like to apologize for missing blogging on a couple of my days.  Without boring everyone, I'll just say that the day job is a little on the stressful side recently.  One particular Saturday there were a couple events I'd have enjoyed attending, but I opted to stay home and work instead.  Late in the afternoon, I walked out onto the patio to stretch and get a breath of fresh air and guess what I found.  My cactus had bloomed.  Isn't it gorgeous?

Keeping with the family tradition, my older son has gotten into photographing wild flowers this year.  He also loves cactuses.  The yellow cactus bloom below is the picture he posted on FB for me this year for Mother's Day.

My younger son and his wife also got into the flower mode this year and brought me the gorgeous Bougenvillia hanging basket.  He knows I love Florida.  Think he knew that these grow beautifully down there?

I've always used music to change my moods.  This year I seem to be in Spring Flower mode.  How about you.  How do you relieve stress?

Fried Mushrooms and an Accidental Movie!

 Hannah, Granny Sylv and Hubby!

Happy Mother's Day!!

I know it was yesterday, but I had so much fun, I'm still thinking about it today!  We have a long-standing tradition of going to the Muskogee Renaissance Faire, but with Little Terry stuck working, we didn't feel right going without him.  We'd planned on lunching at the restaurant where he works, but it was too crowded to get a table!  Great job security for him, but that meant no Little Terry for me.  Flanked by my other two sweeties, Hannah and Russell--Hubby, too--we accidentally hit an early showing of Johnny Depp's Dark Shadows.  We thought we were seeing The Avengers in Imax, but just as we got to the front of the loooong line for tickets, the Imax guy announced it wasn't showing.  I LOVE Imax, so we stayed and ended up loving it!!  Funny and a little spooky and even had a dash of romance!!

From there, we decided Hideaway Pizza wasn't a traditional Mother's Day hotspot and we were right.  No waiting for a table!  After feasting on fried mushrooms dipped in ranch and delicious sausage and mushroom pizza, we headed to see Hubby's nearly 92 year-old grandmother, Granny Sylv.  She has Alzheimer's, but oddly enough, far from her condition being sad, she's super spry and has mentally reverted back to when she was in her twenties.  She's always been a flirt and now has a new "husband" she introduced us to.  When I asked when she got married, she winked and said, "Oh, he's just the live-in kind.  I like those best."  Hannah and I took that to mean she might be temporarily "living with" Tom, but is keeping her options open in case someone hotter comes along??!!   

From there, I needed a nap before starting the second part of our day.  Earlier in the week, my sweet, gorgeous, funny flight attendant friend, Nancy, and her hubby, Randy, invited us for dinner and a glamorous night out at our performing arts center to see Fiddler on the Roof.  It was SO GOOD!!  Although, it'd been years since I'd seen it--with my friend Robert in the cast--and had forgotten the ending isn't exactly joyous, but kinda deeply thought provoking.  Nancy has been in it two times and softly sang along--she missed her calling!!  Hope Delta appreciates having a Broadway star on their flights!!    

Maybe it's the writer in me, but whenever I'm at a live performance, my mind wanders to the cast.  What are their stories?  How long have they been on the road?  Where are they staying?  Who's fooling around with who?  People watching at the theater is the BEST!!  So many real life characters paraded out for me to see!!

By now, you're probably wondering where this is going, and as I'm still pooped and have a tough day of revisions in front of me, probably nowhere profound.  Just an observation about my Mother's Day gifts.  Best was spending time with my awesome family and friends.  And I always love homemade cards and store bought cards with heartfelt messages and gorgeous flowers.  But as someone who spends her life dreaming up stories that hopefully entertain, sitting back, relaxing and being entertained is a great luxury.  From start to finish, my Mother's Day was perfection!!  What did you do?               

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother’s Day!

I had a different concept for this month’s blog when I realized what day my post falls on.

You see, I’m not a mother.  Not in the traditional sense.  I am mother to a Schnoodle.  A Schnauzer/Poodle mix I adopted from the Marshall’s parking lot.  Duffy, is my one and only, although I do hope to adopt a child in the future.

Today I would like to thank all the mom’s out there.  Whether you are the mother of a human or an animal, adopted or full blood - thank you for the time and energy you put in every day.  Being a mom is probably the world’s hardest job. 

I would like to thank my mother, for all your love and support.  My writing has always been my passion and you’ve cheered me on through the years.  And thanks for being “Grandma” to Duffy. 

Mom’s, take the day off.  Kick back, relax and read a good book.  Let those around you wait on you.  This might be hard in my home.  I don’t know how much Duffy can do on his own, being vertically challenged and all. 

Enjoy "Your" day, Moms!

An RT Top Pick

A couple of weeks ago, when my good friend Elle Saint James returned from the awesome RT Convention, she brought with her several copies of RT Book Reviews.  Looking over this leading review source for all things romance, Elle and I oh’d and ah’d over her publisher’s full-page spread featuring a book in her latest series along with the writings of another good friend.  Then, we set the magazine aside and got to work.  She was writing the tenth book in a series.  I was working on a proposal for my next Harlequin American. 

At lunch that day, I picked up the May issue of RT Book Reviews again and flipped through it.  Hmmm, I noted.  Historical Reviews for June releases.  Then it hit me, this was the issue that would list my June release, Rodeo Daughter.  I paged to the Series Romance section and... I confess.  I squealed! 

Rodeo Daughter had received a coveted 4 1/2 star review!    

“Turn the page,” said Elle.  “See if it’s a Top Pick.” 

I did and it was!  Much shouting and jubilation followed!

“Readers better hold on to the tissue box during Duncan’s heart-wrenching look at modern custody issues,” wrote reviewer Pat Cooper.  The heroine of Rodeo Daughter, Amanda Markette, rode her way to a gold buckle in Las Vegas before walking away from the professional rodeo circuit to earn a degree in family law.  After spending years performing in one arena after another, Amanda longed to put down roots.  She swore that, if and when she ever married, home and family would be her number one priority.

 His career is lead prosecutor Mitch Goodwin’s number one priority.  He stands on the brink of achieving all he’s ever wanted when the DA plans to name Mitch as his successor.  But the last person Mitch expects to represent his ex-wife in a custody suit for his adorably head-strong daughter is none other than Amanda Markette, the girl he fell head-over-heels for one summer at rodeo camp.  When a playground mishap forces Mitch and Amanda to spend time together, they walk an ethical tightrope as old feelings come to the surface again.  

I hope you’ll take a chance on Rodeo Daughter when it hits store shelves in a few weeks.  If you do, I’d love to hear from you. 

REPLANTING

Last year in Texas the severe drought killed a lot of tress and shrubs. In our yard we lost an oak tree, our magnolia, fig and peach tree and my gardenia bush. I loved that bush. It was at the corner of our house and when the bush was in bloom you could smell it. Lovely. I missed it this spring, so my husband and I decided to replant. Well, he does the work. I do the heavy thinking. Or maybe nagging. I wanted our fruit trees back and especially the gardenia bush.

The dead trees have been removed and new ones planted. The peach tree had several blooms which turned into tiny peaches. I was excited and then one morning we went out and all the peaches were on the ground, pecked and eaten by birds. Now we’re dealing with pesky birds. So far they haven’t bothered the figs and there are tons on the little tree. I think we need a scarecrow or something.  I can remember my mom tying aluminum pans to fruit trees so the birds wouldn’t bother them. They tingled in the wind and worked, so we may resort to tying pie pans on the tree. Do you have any ideas for keeping birds away?

Have you planted anything new this spring?

Thanks for stopping by,

Linda

www.LindaWarren.net

 

Crochet Your Network

As y'all may have heard me mention, I'm teaching myself to crochet via internet videos.  So far, I've made a few baby blankets and a few dish clothes.  My sad attempt at a baby hat would have fit Barbie.  (Bet that had to do with that gauge thing the patterns keep harping about.  lol)  Here's a blanket that worked, made for my niece.

I've spent the past two weekends at romance writers' gatherings, first Chicago-North's Spring Fling Conference and this past Saturday at Memphis' River City Writers meeting.  Getting to know new people and making meaningful connections interests me more than selling books -- but Thank You to everyone who bought one.  :)  Hopefully, my stories will connect with you also.

Now my family is looking at our summer trip, and I'm searching out new locations to set books.  Because of friends and acquaintances, I have a network of people to ask.  My friend who's a math professor has been to Seattle, as well as some of her colleagues who I met at her birthday party.  One of our authors lives in British Columbia and was kind enough to send me some links, as well as an invitation to visit.  My friend in the St. Louis RWA (MORWA) who's been to Washington will be next on my list to ask, as well as our member who moved to Oregon.  Here's most of the MORWA bunch who attended RWA National's conference last year in New York City. These connections have become the network I rely on.

Just as I take a skein of yarn and connect it over and over into a single project, so I have also woven together friends from different areas and made my life richer and more interesting.  And I've done some of that via the web, lol, just as I'm learning to crochet. 

I met a friend on the blog here after she made a comment, connected with her in DC, and am always so pleased to visit with her on the internet. I hope to "connect" with more of you in the future. 

Megan Kelly
www.megankellybooks.com

Vacation Time

Hi-

 I am on vacation and don't have a blog for you today. I'll be back next month.

Until then,

Have a wonderful May!

Ann Roth
www.annroth.net

APRIL WINNER!!!!

CONGRATULATIONS linda s! You’re the April winner. To receive your free autographed books please contact Cathy McDavid and Tanya Michaels through their Web sites.

To enter the contest simply leave a blog comment and your name will go into the drawing. Simple and painless. And FREE BOOKS.

Free books? Hmm....

Once in a while, as a special promotion, Harlequin gives away books. This helps bring in new readers, so I’m told, although I don’t recall any of my books being part of such a promotion.

Whether to offer books for free—for a short period—is a topic of much discussion among authors. When we reissue our older books or self-publish new ones in ebook format, we do our own promotion, and that involves making decisions. Frankly, I find the idea of giving away my books scary.

Here are the drawbacks:

• Readers who paid for a book, even if it’s only 99 cents or $2.99, may be offended.
• Readers might refrain from buying a book in the hope that it will be given away.
• Some readers get the mistaken idea that because a book is free, that means the rights to the book are public. Piracy is a big enough problem already! 

However, there are advantages to offering a free download for a limited time:

• It draws in new readers for other books.
• It bumps a book higher in the Amazon search engines. Since more people can find it, more copies sell even after it’s no longer free.
• Because there are no printing or shipping charges, the author can do readers a favor with no direct expense. 

 I’ve decided to try an experiment. I won’t do this with many books (definitely not with my half-dozen Regency romances, which are my biggest sellers), but today, May 1, through Thursday, May 3, Amazon will be offering By Leaps and Bounds for free. Here’s the quick pitch:

She used to be a ballerina…

At the height of her success, Kerry Guthrie’s career was cut short by an accident. Now she’s on her feet again, teaching young dancers and hoping for a comeback…until she butts heads with the policeman father of her 15-year-old star student, and feels a new kind of spark.

If you’d like to read By Leaps and Bounds, you can download it free at By Leaps and Bounds Amazon. Don’t own a Kindle? You can download a free app for your computer, iPad or Android tablet, or smartphone here: Free Kindle App.

By the way, while reading on a phone sounds ridiculous, I’ve been glad to have my app when I was unexpectedly stuck somewhere with nothing to read.

 Will this be worth it? Will I regret it? We’ll see! Meanwhile, if you haven’t read By Leaps and Bounds, I hope you’ll give it a try. Thanks!

Cowboy Chow

Chuck Wagon Recipes

A little while back on my blog All My Heroes are Cowboys I talked about Cowboy Chow and posted a few chuck wagon recipes.  In response to that blog I had several readers share with me their personal "cowboy" favorites.  With spring upon us and summer picnics looming on the horizon I thought I'd share two of the recipes that I've tried and rated Five Stars! 

From Virginia C.

Cowboy Beans

1 ½ lbs. ground chuck,

1 onion, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

1 (14 ½ oz.) can kidney beans

1 (14 ½ oz.) can pork & beans

1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce

½ c. brown sugar, packed

1 tbsp. steak sauce

1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

Brown beef with onion and green pepper in a 12' skillet; drain. Add remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Delicious as a main dish served with grilled Texas Toast.  Lefto0vers make great hot dog chili.

*****

Cynthia from Mesa, Arizona recommends the following salsa recipe from the food network.  Cynthia swears by the Tyler Florence concoction so I tried it.  It was a lot of work but I made a huge batch and it lasted forever!  If you're entertaining a big crowd this is the salsa to make!

Salsa Roja

Ingredients

1 dried ancho chile, stemmed and seeded

1 dried Anaheim chile, stemmed and seeded

2 dried chipotle chiles, stemmed and seeded

1 tablespoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

1 cup hot water

8 plum tomatoes, quartered

1 medium Spanish onion, sliced

3 garlic cloves

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 sprigs cilantro

1 tablespoon sugar

1  lime, juiced

Directions

Tear all the chiles into large pieces and toast them in a large dry skillet over medium heat until they change color a bit, about 2 minutes. Add the spices and continue to toast for 2 to 3 minutes until everything is fragrant. Remove from heat and carefully add about 1 cup of hot water to just cover the chiles. Turn the heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes. Preheat the broiler. Put the quartered tomatoes, sliced onion, and whole garlic cloves onto a roasting tray, spreading out evenly. Drizzle with plenty of olive oil and season well with salt and pepper and sprinkle with cilantro sprigs. Broil until everything is nicely charred, about 10 minutes (you want lots of deep rich color so don't be afraid if some of the edges get pretty black).

 Add the chili mixture to a blender and puree. Remove the tomato/onion mixture from the roasting pan and carefully add it to the blender, (it will be hot). Blend until smooth (you may need to work in 2 batches). Once everything is pureed, pour the mixture back into the pot over low heat adding a little water if the salsa is too thick. Stir in the sugar and lime juice and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Transfer to a large serving bowl and serve.

  *****

If you've got any great "cowboy" recipes please share them! I'm always looking for something new to take to family gatherings.

Happy Trails!

Marin
Arizona Cowboy (Feb 2012) BUY!

A Cowboy's Duty (Aug 2012) Pre-ORDER!
Beau: Cowboy Protector (Nov 2012)
Happy Ever After...The Cowboy Way

Technology...How Did We Ever Live Without It?

IPOD's. MP3 players. Smart phones. Laptops. E-readers.

What would our lives be like without all that? Nowadays, could you even imagine a world without microwave ovens?

Without home computers?

My grandmother could.

Grandma, who passed away a few years ago, was born very close to the turn of the century. Not this century, of course—the previous one! And according to my favorite online encyclopedia, she was born before all of the above.

Also before the jet plane.

Before the airplane.

Before TELEVISION!

That's hard to believe, isn't it?

In a relatively few decades, so many new things have been invented that have changed our world forever. In just a few short recent years, technology has evolved so rapidly that even my twentysomething nieces and nephews were born before many of the inventions listed above.

Sometimes, I'm not so sure that "new" necessarily equates to "new and improved"—but I do know there are some things I can't imagine living without.

Number One, no doubt about it, is my desktop computer.

As a full-time writer who spends most of her day alone in a room with the imaginary characters from her books, I'd have to say my computer's a lifeline. I'd be lost without it!

How about you? What piece of modern technology could you absolutely not live without?


All my best to you,

Barbara

~~~~~~

Barbara White Daille
http://www.barbarawhitedaille.com
http://www.facebook.com/barbarawhitedaille
https://twitter.com/BarbaraWDaille

Critters, Babies and Mid-Year Resolutions!!

Hubby and I at Easter dinner . . . 

In Los Cabos, because Little Terry was working as the waiter!!

What a week!!!  Let's see, in the past seven days we've done taxes, had a super sick kiddo (thank goodness she's now on the mend), discovered a new critter gnawing his or her way into our house, had a prom to find a suit for, celebrated Easter at a Mexican restaurant, got Daisy trimmed for warmer weather, discovered our two-year-old stove is breaking and four-month-old fridge is on the fritz, said some pretty major hellos and goodbyes, toss in a sprinkling of family drama, and in case that wasn't enough, today, on what was supposed to be me and Hubby's fun afternoon casino date, we both left the Osage as big sad losers.

In the midst of all of that, I managed to squeeze in some writing, but not nearly as much as I'd've liked.  Part of being a writer is tackling lots of questions--where do I get my ideas?  How long does it take to write one of "those" books?  Are you rich?  And the one I struggle with the most--how do you summon creativity and romance on demand?

Each New Year's Eve, when I'm trotting out my tried, true and often failed resolutions, along with losing bunches of weight, I always vow that this will be the year I don't let outside issues interfere with my writing time.  Why am I bringing this up now instead of back in January?  Because it's only April and here I am, already sweating the little and not-so-little things that take up valuable space in my mind!!

Meanwhile, poor Tristan needs me to help him come to grips with his ex's remarriage and cross-country move with his son.  Then there's Brynn--feeling thirteen months pregnant while single-handedly raising a sullen six-year-old and dealing with the fallout of her murdered superstar baseball-playing hubby having hidden secrets more devastating than she feels capable to bear.  Their problems make mine seem silly, so why can't I put their issues front and center?  Why does yet another squirrel or raccoon dining our house take center stage in my head when Brynn's baby is due any second??!!  See?  I must learn to set priorities, people!!

Okay, so I'm taking a deep breath and vowing that next week my fictional characters are going to feel far more real than the usual chaos ruling our home.  If an appliance breaks, I'm not going to let it get a rise out of me.  If anyone has drama, they'll need to make an appointment!!  As for all those pounds I'm supposed to be losing, I'm already down twenty . . . should I go for twenty-five? :-)

              

Superstitious?

I am!  Those around me will tell you I am one of the most superstitious people they know.  If I say “knock on wood”, you can rest assured, I will physically knock on wood.  When I sit down at a table to eat, the blade of my knife must face away from the plate.  I will casually flip it over before my patootie ever hits the chair if it doesn’t.  And, my grandmother taught me, if you enter someone’s home, you must leave through the same door, or bad luck will strike.

I do have my limits.  I don’t throw salt over my shoulder for fear it will get in my dog’s eyes.  But if I see a black cat cross before me, I will turn around and go in the opposite direction. 

Triskaidekaphobia defined me perfectly.  That is the very real and morbid fear of the number 13.  So, it’s ironic that my very first blog for Harlequin American Romance is today, Friday the 13^th.

Just to give you an example of the extent of my fear, a few years ago when I finished planting my spring flower beds, I stopped to literally smell the roses.  I counted 13 rose bushes.  That couldn’t possibly be right.  I counted and recounted.  How could this happen?  I’m more careful than this!  In a panic, I called my mother.  “I can’t believe I planted 13 rose bushes!”  Her response, “What do you want me to do?  Drive over there and pick you up so you can get some more?”  YES!  And she did.  I couldn’t trust myself to drive.  I already tempted fate by planting 13 bushes.  Who knew what would happen if I got behind the wheel of a car.

I have gone to unbelievable extremes to avoid the number 13.  Yet somehow, in a bout of extreme exhaustion, I submitted my first manuscript to Harlequin on December 13^th.  I didn’t realize my error until March 13^th, when I received THE CALL from my wonderful editor, Kathleen Scheibling.  When I looked back and saw my submission date, I nearly fainted.  Could it be the ever evil 13 wasn’t so bad after all?  A few days later, when Marin Thomas asked me to blog for American Romance, I was over the moon.  She asked me to choose a monthly blog date and low and behold, the 13^th was available.  

I firmly believe everything happens in threes.  Being here, with all of you on Friday, April 13^th completed the circle.  My irrational fear is replaced with confidence and positive energy.  I know this is sending a fit of laughter through those who know me best.  I would never even leave my house on Friday the 13^th, let alone celebrate the date.  That CALL was one month ago today – so now every 13^th reminds me of what I’ve accomplished so far.  And to boot, my first book, tentatively titled Double Trouble, will be out in the first half of 2013.  Too bad they don’t release books on the 13^th of the month.


While I’ve overcome my Triskaidekaphobia, I do have other superstitions when it comes to writing.  My biggest one…I Love Lucy must be playing on television when I write.  I can barely hear it, but it has to be on.  If it’s not, I can’t concentrate and I feel my work won’t be any good.


Yes, I’m quirky, but what writer is perfectly in their right mind?  But I’m also curious – I can’t be the only one out there with writing superstitions.  I’d love to hear about yours.


Happy Friday the 13^th


Amanda Renée
www.amandarenee.com

Cue the Marching Band

You’d think that I’d be used to it by now. After all, Rodeo Daughter is my third book for Harlequin American Romance. Yet, I can’t deny it. When I open the front door and see a box from Harlequin on the porch, I get goose bumps. Truly. Goosebumps. I only wish I'd known the books were on their way. I'd have hired a marching band to accompany the UPS man on his way up the sidewalk.

Opening the box, pulling that first copy of a book—my book!—from it. Well, that makes my tummy all a-flutter. What’s the first thing I do? Yes, I know. I should start contacting reviewers and sending them advance copies--that's why I get these books ahead of time, after all.

But for a few minutes, I can't resist. I fan the pages and inhale deeply. There’s nothing like the smell of a freshly printed book. Especially when you’ve poured your heart and soul into it, the way I did with Rodeo Daughter.

I guess that’s because Amanda and Mitch’s story included so many aspects of my own life. No, I’m not a lawyer. Or the divorced single parent of a four-year-old. But growing up on Florida’s east coast, I looked forward every year to the big Silver Spurs Rodeo in nearby Kissimmee. I spent the intervening months mucking stalls at a local riding stable. Each weekend, I plodded down dusty trails on horses that wouldn’t know what to do in a barrel race. But at night, I dreamed of becoming a rodeo star.

Rodeo Daughter is the closest I’ve come to achieving that dream. The heroine of this book, Amanda Markette, rode her way to a gold buckle in Las Vegas before walking away from the professional rodeo circuit to earn a degree in family law. After spending years performing in one arena after another, Amanda longed to put down roots. She swore that, if and when she ever married, home and family would be her number one priority.

His career is lead prosecutor Mitch Goodwin’s number one priority. He stands on the brink of achieving all he’s ever wanted when the DA plans to name Mitch as his successor. But the last person Mitch expects to represent his ex-wife in a custody suit for his adorably head-strong daughter is none other than Amanda Markette, the girl he fell head-over-heels for one summer at rodeo camp. And when a playground mishap forces Mitch and Amanda to spend time together they walk an ethical tightrope as old feelings come to the surface again.

I hope you enjoy reading Amanda and Mitch’s story as much as I loved writing it. Rodeo Daughter is slated for release in early June.

HAPPY EASTER!!!

HAPPY EASTER everyone!!

We had a big family Easter yesterday. Today we’ll go to
church and have a quiet lunch at home to recuperate from all the sugary treats.
I had my marshmallow chocolate egg, well, maybe more than one. So I’m good.

I don’t have much to blog about except to congratulate Tanya
Michaels for her RITA^® nomination for A Mother’s Homecoming. My book,
The Texan’s Bride, was also a finalist so I’m happy happy. It’s a Super Romance though. Still happy. Our wonderful Senior Editor Kathleen Scheibling edited both books. Yay for Kathleen!! Wish us luck on July 29^th at the Romance Writer’s of America conference in Anaheim California.

Enjoy the holiday! And the treats.

Linda

www.LindaWarren.net