Pep Talk
Last evening while watching a romantic movie (shocked?), a commercial came on for Peloton, and they said, “run your own race.” I like the message. It can be applied anywhere in a person’s life, but especially writing. Authors are running a race to hit best seller lists, have more reviews, write more books, etc. Authors, like many people, can be competitive too. But what’s so important is not to worry about other authors’ successes, but concentrate on your own. Compete against yourself. It’s a healthier way to live.
Hockey Season
If you’re watching hockey (or not), be sure to pick up my books with the fellows of Atlanta Edge. Fake Play has a female goalie in it. Of course, the MMC is hot and in the NHL. And the other book, Crossing The Line has an ambitious Russian skater who screws up and must apologize big time to the sweet woman in his life. The FMC is a puck bunny and has a big secret. As all of my books, they’re spicy.
Fisting a handful of hair at the back of her skull, I bring her lips to mine. Her sweet submission and game-for-anything attitude has kept me interested in her more than any puck bunny prior.
Roman Volkov
Reading
Yes. I actually make time to read. I read in bed before I get up and start the day, I read in the car (of course, my husband’s behind the steering wheel; otherwise, I’m listening to an audio book). Then I read on my porch at some point during a beautiful day. Then I read before I go to sleep at night. A little obsessive? Nah.
There are a few authors I want to mention. No, I don’t know them personally, but I’ve enjoyed several of their books and “discovered” them recently.
If you love medieval romance, then you need to read Alice Coldbreath. She writes medieval (knights & ladies, etc.) set in a fictional country similar to Britain. She also writes Victorian romance. I’ve enjoyed those too.
If you love criminal romance, be sure to check out S. J. Tilly. I’m reading her Alliance series. They’re standalones. I’m on book four. Book two (King) was my favorite so far.
Then author C. M. Stunich’s book, Throwaway Prince. This is not for everyone. Some people would call it a dark romance. The hero is unique to say the least. Be aware it has a cliffhanger. She hasn’t published book two.
Thankfully, I’ve read more good ones than not. The weird thing was I purchased an old book (audio) by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss. I messed up. I was thinking it was The Wolf And The Dove (Medieval Romance), but it was her The Flame And The Flower (pre-civil war US). I loved the book back in the 70s, but it’s not my cup of tea now. So frustrating. I hate to return books (audio or whatever).
Beta Readers
Savage Champion is still with my editor. I’ve heard back from a Beta reader. It appears I need to smooth out the romantic relationship between the main characters and define my villain a little more. By the way, if you’re interested in being a beta reader, you can contact me on my website.
Be sure to pre-order the book at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo Books, or Apple Books.
Hope you have a wonderful Valentine’s day. If you don’t have a sweetheart or one who will give you chocolate (or treats), go and buy your own. As a romance author, I hit the shelves the next day for romantic giveaways.
Regards.
Carla
I came across Suzanne’s books while looking for a new shape-shifter story. I do love those. One of my favorites is Jennifer Ashley’s Shifters Unbound series. Sadly, she rarely writes new additions to it. So, I went looking for someone else’s. Suzanne does have a shape-shifter series but her vampire one caught my attention instead. With a title like Here Be Sexist Vampires, how could I resist?
turns. See. She even has me waxing poetic about her books. Let’s say this. If you enjoy a well-written historical romance, with romance and certainly some hot kissing and a little bit of sex sprinkled throughout, this is certainly the author for you to read.
I love marriages of convenience (historical or contemporary), male – female spy teams, cowboys (historical or contemporary), and reverse roles (like my book Circle of Desire, the heroine was the dangerous assassin). Most of my reading and writing is dark, though I do enjoy reading romantic comedy on occasion. But the hero or heroine cannot be or act stupid. Bad or dumb luck is okay.
Lately, I’ve realized how much I miss holding and reading a paperback book. Plus I hate how all of my e-books are all jumbled together. No matter how I set up categories in iBooks or Kindle, I still find myself thumbing through several unfinished books to find a new one. Then I’m not sure if they are unread or an unfinished one. While with a paperback, you can place the new book on a certain shelf or leave it in a shopping bag. Simple. Anyway, I’ve plan to read more paperback books.
Lately, I’ve been struggling with my writing time. So much going on in my life. Nothing bad, just a lot of things and several changes. One is that we’re moving this summer out of our home of twenty-four years. Plus the summers are crazy at the day-job. Lots of overtime. And I need to learn to say no with volunteer work, but I love helping people.
that’s saying something about the author’s writing. HA! For it held my attention. And if you’re wondering, the hero wasn’t a horn dog. They were very likable. Great sense of humors for both.
As I mentioned before, I listen to audio books on my drive to the day job and back. Well, actually anywhere that takes tens minutes or more, such as trips to Nashville (Go Preds!), luncheons, conferences, and writers’ meetings.
On and off for many years I’ve listened to audio books from cassettes to iTunes to Amazon’s Audible. Overall, the narrators have gotten better. At one time, authors wanted well-known actors narrating their books. You can even see a few still do. But I have to say they are not always the best choice.
Carla Swafford, Author 