Carla Swafford loves romance novels, action/adventure movies, and men, and her books reflect that. And that’s not all, she’s crazy about hockey. She’s married to her high school sweetheart and lives in the Southeastern U.S.
Look at all of that stuff! That’s my stash of swag I will be giving away or raffling off. Wouldn’t you like to know what’s in the boxes and bags? You need to be at the Southern Magic Romance Readers Luncheon on November 2. Want to find out where and how? Click here. Jeaniene Frost will be there! She’s the keynote speaker. Plus we will have 35 more authors for you to meet. Probably a few you know. One I’m looking forward to meeting is Shiloh Walker. She’s a favorite of mine.
Anyway, I hope to see you there. Be sure to say hi!
P.S. Did you see the poster against the wall? Oh, yes, that will be raffled off too. He’s beautiful in that size. *snicker*
A few months ago, I mentioned on Facebook five ways to say thank you to the authors that write the books you love. I thought it worth repeating here.
5) Purchase the book new from a reputable bookseller.
4) Be sure to hit LIKE and rate it wherever it’s sold on line (see #5).
3) Sign up for the author’s newsletter (if she has one). Publishers love knowing the author has fans interested enough in her early/special announcements.
2) Become a fan: Follow, tweet, and LIKE and comment occasionally. (Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads and her blog.) We love hearing from you.
1) TELL YOUR FRIENDS AND ANYONE WHO WILL LISTEN ABOUT THE BOOK(S)!
Then we can thank you in return by writing MORE BOOKS!
I love historical romances. Especially those set in the Middle Ages and the U.S. West in the 1800s. In fact, my first completed manuscript was set during the medieval times. And I have another one that has done well in contests (unpublished and uncompleted).
Recently, I wrote the first couple chapters of a western. Just trying my hand at it and I placed it in a contest that allow published authors to enter categories they are not published in. The scores were good. The comments were interesting.
Just a few more research books.
The main complaint I have is when a judge makes a comment about the morals of that time that are so narrow and uninformed, and most likely taken from movies about the period, I just shake my head. Not all women were treated like ladies and not all men treated them as gentlemen. If a woman who appeared to be a prostitute knocked on his door, I can promise she would never be allowed anywhere near his family.
History is a funny thing. People love to think back “in the good ol’ days” that everyone treated everyone fairly. They forget it wasn’t until the 20th century that women even had the right to vote. In the 1800s, women were considered second class citizens and treated almost like children.
The majority of women at the time had the choice of being a wife or, if they didn’t have family that could afford to take care of them, a prostitute.
Anyway, people really need to remember that the 1800s and earlier had harsher and tighter morals. Sure all kinds of naughty things went on, but they tried to keep it separated from their family life.
Sigh. This could be debated and picked apart forever. Let’s say this is my opinion and leave it at that.
I’ve noticed I’ve become picky about watching television. Partly, of course, because I rather be writing. Feels more productive some days. But mostly because television shows usually disappoint me. If they have romance in them at all, they drag it out, making the sexual tension so frustrating, I get to the point I scream at the TV, “Get on with it!” E.g. Elementary and Unforgettable – love those shows but so frustrating.
Comparing TV series to books is unfair in a way. But let’s compare TV series to a book series such as Jeaniene Frost’s Night Huntress with Cat and Bones. Two vampires who try to keep the supernatural world in order. The hero and heroine hooked up in the first book (after some interesting love/hate situations) and then they sorta broke up before book two but got back together. So I believe if the story is good enough, having the two main characters having sex and enjoying each other, doesn’t dilute the telling.
Some TV executives still believe the old Moonlighting series failed in its fourth season because the two main characters had sex in season three. (Click here to read more about that.) I disagree and obviously whoever wrote the info in Wikipedia agreed with me. Hey, Bruce was making Die Hard during season three. He was about to be a big time action star. Sigh. Love that man.
Anyway, I believe the main characters can have sex, great sex for that matter, and still be interesting because as we all know sex doesn’t solve all problems. And if you’re like me, when I’m pissed at my hubby, sex is the last thing on my mind. Yeah, I heard angry sex is great, but I’m not wired that way. My characters in my books (CIRCLE OF DESIRE) may be that way, but not me!
So what is my point? Let the people have sex and then complicate it. It will make it more interesting.
I have The Chronicles of RIddick on DVD, but if I see it come on a TV station, I can’t resist. Love that movie. Two hunks I love to watch move, hear them talk, and see them kick ass. Vin Diesel and Karl Urban. But I have to say Karl is my favorite in the movie. Something about armor and that dangerous hair cut. What can I say? I have a kinky side. Like you didn’t know. Ha!
Love those glowing eyes. Scary sexy.Warrior new age.Lucky girl. You know she was taking advantage.All cleaned up and sexy.
Carla Swafford, Author 