Category Archives: Guest Blogging

Spotlight on Mad for You in Madrid

Posted on by Joanne Guidoccio

I’m happy to welcome Soul Mate author Stacy Hoff. Today, Stacy shares her latest release Mad for You in Madrid.

Blurb

Lori Cayne is in a tricky situation. Her public relations job has sent her to Spain for a project that is way over her head. Her task is to convince American tourists to stay at a Madrid hotel. Unfortunately, Lori knows little about public relations and even less about the hotel industry. Dealing with the client, however, will be the real challenge. Hotel magnate Daniel Vega is rich, uber-sexy, and the one-night stand that wasn’t. That’s because Lori had inadvertently stood him up before things got a chance to really heat up. Now Daniel wants nothing to do with her, personally or professionally.

Daniel Vega is none-too-pleased to learn that Lori will be handling his new hotel’s publicity campaign. Her flaky ways will be hell on his business, and on him. Yet shutting her out is hard to do when the woman is full of surprises and an even fuller heart. Her good nature makes her willing to do anything for anybody. When Daniel’s brother, Elias, asks Lori to be his fake-fiancée at an important event, Daniel is not surprised when Lori agrees. What he is surprised by is the pang of jealousy. Maybe Lori isn’t the only one with personal issues to work out. After all, if Daniel is truly the success he thinks he is, how can off-beat, business greenhorn Lori Cayne emotionally bring him to his knees?

When news of the fake engagement creates a scandal, both Lori’s company and Daniel’s world-wide enterprise may be damaged beyond repair. The damage done to their hearts, however, may be a whole lot worse.

Excerpt

Daniel’s head cocked to one side. “Is that your family’s business? A restaurant?”

“Oh, no,” Lori answered. “My family runs a public relations firm. When I was in college, I always worked elsewhere during summer breaks. To, well, you know . . .”

“Escape?”

“Yeah.”

He smiled sympathetically. “I understand. I worked in my family’s business for many years.”

“It’s never easy, is it? How do you handle it?”

“I don’t. My solution was to leave and start my own company. Worked like a charm.”

“You made a good decision. Cheers.” She tapped her glass against his. “Here’s to survival. And to liquid courage.”

“Salud.”

“How exactly did you tell your family you were leaving? I’d love inspiration.”

“Simple. I told them I was going off on my own. Not a bit of drama ensued.”

She felt a sharp sting from biting her lip. “That’s awesome. I don’t think I’d have such an easy time.”

He laughed. “I’m lying, of course. Extricating myself was quite the ordeal.”

Lori burst out laughing. “Should I doubt everything you say? Is your name even Daniel?”

“I would never kid about something as important as my name.”

“I see.” She grinned back at him. “A man who knows his own identity and isn’t afraid to flaunt it.” Heat rushed up to her cheeks. Was she flirting? Definitely. How the hell was she pulling it off? What’s in this drink anyway? A secret concoction of hormones and mojo? Maybe this was typical of how introductions could be—when she wasn’t under her mother’s ever-hovering shadow.

Lori fought off the memory of the last time she’d met an attractive man. Her mother had unexpectedly brought a potential new client around to her cubicle. Lori had been so nervous when she shook his hand, she knocked an entire cup of lukewarm coffee all over her white summer suit. The man’s beige blazer wasn’t neglected either. Horrified, she went to clean up the mess. Grabbing a napkin off the desk, she dabbed at his jacket. Unfortunately, she’s grabbed the napkin she had used for her doughnut. The man’s beige blazer shined from fresh grease. Twin stains of shame. “What the hell?” she had shouted, in full panic mode.

Her mother had frowned. “Maybe if you didn’t constantly eat at your desk, these things wouldn’t happen.”

“How is drinking coffee eating?” Lori protested. “Has coffee morphed into a solid somehow?”

Her mother’s eyes traveled to the stale, damp, jelly doughnut swimming on her desk next to the overturned coffee cup. Powdered sugar particles lay victim everywhere.

Lori had quickly shut her mouth. Her mother and the gorgeous man walked away. His expression, like the condition of his sports coat, grim. Mom’s agitation radiated throughout the firm for the rest of the day. When her mother revealed Lori’s mishap cost the firm the business, Lori’s expression darkened, too. The result, every time her mother brought in a potential new client, Lori did her best to duck out of the office.

Of course, hiding was nothing new. On the first day of kindergarten, Mom ran up to Lori’s new classmates, introducing Lori as if Lori were mute. The surprised children stared at them both until embarrassment truly rendered Lori dumb. No wonder she dreaded introductions like death.

Weirdly, the introduction to Daniel was so easy, and so enticing, Lori fell right into it. Answering his amicable greeting had been easier than opening her eyes to a beautiful bright morning. Luckily, there had been no time to dwell on his too-handsome, ultra-sexy exterior.

Given her introverted nature, the successful meeting with Daniel was an anomaly. Could an anomaly turn into an opportunity? She glanced around the ballroom in search of her mother.

buynow

Each Building Love book can be read as a stand-alone novel. The other books in the Building Love series are:


















About Stacy Hoff

Stacy Hoff is a contemporary romance author, as well as an attorney. She has practiced law for over two decades, primarily handling contracts. Romance novels have always been her secret passion. She writes her romantic stories until the wee hours of the night. Stacy lives in New England with her husband and two boys.

Stacy’s other full-length contemporary romance novels are:
JOCKEYING FOR YOU 2017 Gayle Wilson Award For Excellence winner
DESIRE IN THE EVERGLADES (Desire #1)
DESIRE IN THE ARCTIC (Desire #2) 2016 finalist in the Las Vegas Romance Writers “I Heart Indie” contest
LAWFULLY YOURS

Where to find Stacy…

Amazon | Twitter |Author Website


10 Fruitcake Tidbits

Posted on by Joanne Guidoccio

I’m happy to welcome author Vicki Batman. Today, Vicki shares interesting tidbits about fruitcake and her latest anthology, Whispers of Winter.

Here’s Vicki!

Since my story, The Great Fruitcake Bake-off, is in a holiday anthology, Whispers of Winter, I thought I’d share ten tidbits about fruitcake. I know many of you are naysayers and some are devotees. I love it. My favorite is chocolate dipped—tastes like candy!

1. The name “fruitcake” originated in the 1500’s.

2. Fruitcake goes way back, to Roman times.

3. Early ingredients included pomegranate seeds, raisins, and pine nuts.

4. The British added dried fruits in the 1400s.

5. The Victorians served the cake at tea time.

6. Mail order fruitcakes began in 1913.

7. Alcohol makes the cake edible for many years.

8. Manitou Springs, Colorado, hosts the Great Fruitcake Toss on the first Saturday in January.

9. 47 percent of people received a fruitcake as a gift and threw it away.

10. An ornate multi-tiered fruitcake was at the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.

FMI

https://whatscookingamerica.net/History/Cakes/Fruitcake.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fruitcake/
https://recipes.howstuffworks.com/menus/fruitcake3.htm/
http://www.creatinghistory.com/history-of-fruitcake/

Logline – The Great Fruitcake Bake-off

When a five-time champion Samantha Greene teams up with her new neighbor, Dixon Roberts, for The Great Fruitcake Bake-off, they discover baking a prize-winning entry is complicated, bad guys are plotting to take the crown, and first prize isn’t just about a ribbon.

Excerpt

“I’m not entering this year.” I pinned an unbreakable stare on Bethany, my co-worker and long-time friend who lived in the same apartment complex as me. Standing firm, I crossed my arms. “Period.”

We’d arrived early for work and were piddling over coffee in her cubical like we always did before diving into the nuts and bolts of company business. She rolled her eyes in the “I’m so not believing this” fashion and tweaked the Santa garland decorating her cube’s walls. “Why not, Samantha? You should be proud to be the five-time winner of The Great Fruitcake Bake-off. You’re a-a”–her words trailed off as she searched the ceiling for the ultimate in descriptive–“legend.”

I dropped my arms to twitch my black skirt in place, then I tucked my shoulder-length hair behind my ear. I let loose a long exhale, “Is being a legend in the fruitcake world a good thing?”

“What’s your point?” Bethany asked.

“Alright already, it’s exhausting. Finding the perfect recipe, then bake and exhibit it. The tension comes close to killing my holiday enjoyment. Besides”-–I shoved my finger in her direction—-“shouldn’t the love be spread? Shouldn’t somebody else win the Bake-off?”

“Oh, by golly, Sam.” Bethany’s hands covered her eyes. A few seconds passed, then she clasped them to her chest, inhaled, and composed her annoyance before saying, “We’re talking fruitcake here. It’s not groundbreaking like-like the Declaration of Independence. Or the Pyramids.”

buynow

Social Media Links

Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Author Central | Goodreads | Email


10 Little Known Big Apple Seeds About NYC

Posted on by Joanne Guidoccio

I’m thrilled to welcome author Missye K. Clarke to the Power of 10 series. Today, Missye shares interesting (and little known) facts about New York City and her novel, Jersey Dog.

Here’s Missye!

As my McGuinness/Pedregon Casebooks are set in New York City and bits of New Jersey—NYC’s also known by The City That Never Sleeps, The Big Apple, Metropolis, or Gotham to those of you in Rio Linda :)—I thought I’d share these Ten Little Known Big Apple Seeds About NYC with you. And as I’ve lived in this town two-thirds of my life, there’s even a few fun facts I didn’t know. Buckle up for some neat fun, mystery fans and lovers everywhere!

10. Up until 1957, the postal system in NYC used a pneumatic network to deliver mail around the five boroughs–more or less rendering the deliveries not seeing the light of day until they reached address destination–or lots of dead letter mail in the Address Unknown bins, I’m sure.

9. Though I don’t know this from personal experience, I’ve always wanted to try this. But I lived this through Casper and Logan in Jersey Dogs when they did it. If you entered the NYC subway system and never left, it’s so vast you can travel it for three days to a week straight without breaking a connection.

8. New York City has more people than 39 of the 50 U.S. states do.

7. The city’s tap water has tiny shrimp called copepods in it. Explains why I always thought that water was disgusting! >.<

6. Remember the PONY sneakers? I do–but I always thought it was just a word, like Pepsi or Nike or Xerox. If you don't remember them, it's probably because it's a regional/Northeast/NYC thing. Turns out, PONY's an acronym for Product Of New York. Now we know! (courtesy: http://www.pony-us.com)

5. The Flatiron Building—the odd one on 23rd Street and shaped like a triangle—isn't solely admired for its architecture. It has a wind tunnel causeway near it that a constant breeze comes through–and which lifts women’s skirts. Back in the day when it was risqué for any part of a lady's legs be shown, men gathered there to get free peeks of something they shouldn't. To this day, men still gather outside to watch the fun, weather permitting. (Don’t blame them for gawking—if anything, blame Mother Nature for taking advantage of city layout! 😀 )

4. Ah, NYC brownstones. Aren’t they gorgeous? Before you get all nostalgic for one, not all are what they seem. The ones with blackout windows and no address numbers on the doors are fake fronts. Instead, they’re there to hide the city’s subways maintenance and ventilation shafts.

3. Only one homicide happened on 9/11. To date, it remains unsolved.

2. Madison Square, Union Square, Washington Square, and Bryant Parks, all located in Manhattan, were once cemeteries. (Considering my Casebooks narrator’s name's “Casper”? 🙂 ) . . . Boo! Spooky!

1. Never mind spooky, let’s talk creepy: NYC buries its unclaimed bodies on a spit of land off the Bronx coast called Hart Island. Almost 1 million bodies have been buried there since 1869—and this island is not open or accessible to the public.

Bonus: Adjusted for inflation, a NYC hotdog vendor must pluck up almost $325,000 grand yearly for a permit if they wish to do business near The Pond of the Central Park Zoo. This zone is one of 20 of the most expensive places to run and operate a hotdog cart. Now you know what your $25 bucks shelled out for a loaded dog, a hot soft pretzel, and cold Coke is really going for!

I hope you enjoyed these fun NYC facts. Everyone should see Gotham once in their lives—and for those of you living there, play tourist for a day or a weekend. Either way, you’ll have a wonderful, helluva time!

Some facts courtesy of Buzzfeed and Museum of the City of New York (MCNY.org).

Blurb

Two adopted cousins. Two mysterious prostitutes. And a biologic father wants both sons dead.

Casper’s and Logan McGuinness’s junior year opens with a bloodstained, unexpected contact and an eerie text coming to pass. While Enzo and Angela de Francisci’s stubbornly refuse to explain the boys’ biologic parents’ backstories, the cousins dig into their pasts in stealth, only to unravel a sordid history meant to stay unknown and bigger than they realized. The first of several attempts on the boys’ lives reveals a desk clerk’s true identity, and conversations with a former john, lands Casper and Logan on the streets of New York and respite from a former madam. Through an intricate tale of loyalty, humor, first love, and discovering trust and sacrifice, Jersey Dogs Casper and Logan venture into the personal and collective unknown to stop a brutal killer and a network of thugs from fulfilling a murderous to-do list—and learning to trust one another so they’ll stay two steps ahead of alive.

buynow

Bio and Links

Missye K. Clarke is a lifelong Big Apple fan, even though she and her family reside in central Pennsylvania (cost of living and lack of forestry drove them out for greener pastures).

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Email

The Road to Self-Publication

Posted on by Joanne Guidoccio

I’m happy to welcome author Ryan Jo Summers to the Power of 10 series. Today, Erin shares insights from her self-publication journey and her latest release, September’s Song.

Here’s Ryan!

“September’s Song” is actually my second self-published book, but the reasons behind each one, and the processes along the way, are vastly different.

In July 2017 I took my WordPress blog series and created a book and offered it to the public. It was a non-fictional account taken almost directly from the blog journal that chronicled the first two years with my adopted collie, Ty. The reason was simply to share the story of our successes and failures to a wide audience and offer encouragement to other pet owners struggling with a severely traumatized pet.

I used Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) for that project because it was free, (which fit my budget), it was easy and almost mistake proof, and the system walked me through each step. For simple projects like blog to book, cook books, memoirs, etc.… I would recommend KDP. I used my own photo I took for the cover, so I had no outward expenses. Each sale is pure profit, which in turn a percentage is donated back to the rescue where I adopted Ty from.

Now, this past year I was feeling gusty and decided to take one of the manuscripts I’d been shopping around and self-publish it myself. I felt up to the challenge. First I selected a script that was well received by beta readers and agents, but turned down because it was hard to niche. Then the work really began.

# 1—Timing. I selected October 5th as my targeted release date. I needed something tangible I could strive for. I picked then because it happens to be my birthday and it seemed like a good present to reward myself with. Starting about April or May I started collecting downloads and printed them out from various sources on marketing, promo timelines, self-publishing checklists, and more. I thought I’d have about 6 or 7 months to put this altogether. I’d done Ty’s Journey with KDP in about a month, so this should be plenty of time to build up excitement. Reality… I have barely read any of those downloads. The 6-7 months of timing sounded good in theory but lacked in practicality. In May I left my full time security job to work full time in pet care and devote more time to my writing endeavors. I was completely unprepared for the pet care to require more time over the summer than my 45-55 hour a week security job had! Plus I took on a couple of computer-driven side jobs that dipped into my time. So I ended up feeling like a stumbled through the six months of preparation to release this book. But here is what I did:

# 2—I hired an editor to take the beta-read manuscript and give it a good final editing. I found a gentleman through contacts who used to edit for the Chicago Times as a journalist. It was costly and slow-going, but he made some great points I might not have noticed. Simple stuff really, but things that helped with sentence flow and syntax items. The drawback was he didn’t particularly care for the subject matter. Being a magazine journalist, he wasn’t well-read in fiction. Though he came highly recommended, and our initial phone call was over two hours long, in the end he wasn’t the right editor for this book. Lesson learned.

# 3—While the editor had the manuscript, I worked on a cover. I bought a limited trial through Shutterstock and bought some photos for the background and front image. It was fairly inexpensive and I also used my ten-photo trial to nab some pictures I think I might be able to use later. Then I bought a program called Book Creative to take those photos and background to make a front and back cover. It was a fairly easy process, and not terribly expensive. Edits were by far the biggest expense I’ve put into “September’s Song”.

# 4—Fine tuning the blurb, keywords, tagline, etc… I sent a sample out of a blurb and tagline to a Facebook group and asked for suggestions. A few good points came up and I tweaked the blurb. That process was free and well worth the two or three weeks I waited for everyone to respond. A publishing house I belong to has a list of keywords. I combed the list, looking for everything that described this story. Time consuming but worth it to find words I’d have never thought of.

# 5—Research. I didn’t want to return to Kindle KDP for this book, so I searched around at various platforms that allow writers to self-publish. This was massively time-consuming and required copious notes. Actually I didn’t wait until step # 4 to do this, I started even before the editor, but I made my final choice about now. I went with Lulu.com. There are pros and cons with every platform, and I read reviews of authors who went with each one, why they were happy or not. I looked at costs to create, return on investment, avenues where the books would be available and in what formats. There is just an endless amount of information to wade through when looking for a self-publishing option. I reached the conclusion there is no perfect self-publishing avenue and each one is a trial and error. We can only research and make the best education decision we can.

# 6—Final revisions. Once I had the edited manuscript back from the editor, I had to go through with my fine toothed comb and make corrections that I agreed with, do a couple more read-throughs, (and still found two tiny errors everyone had missed).

# 7—Formatting. Oh how I hate formatting. Once I had a clean copy, free of errors and exactly how I wanted it, now I had to format the document to Lulu’s specifications. Line by line, page by page, (330+ pages) it was tedious work. But it will make for a nicer looking book. So I sucked it up and formatted the script. I added a dedication page at this time too. Something else important I’d been chipping away at.

# 8—Creating/ pricing. Finally, I sat down at Lulu.com and walked through the process of creating the book. First, the ebook. It was completely free and really only took around 3 hours or so to do. I selected a free ISBN, had to convert my word doc to a pdf, which became an epub when it was finished. I uploaded my cover. I set my price and marketing selections and Wham… one book ready to go. So far it’s only available on Lulu.com and iBooks, but it should be available on all the regular channels soon. That was easy. Next…the paperback. There were a few more choices to make, mostly in design. Again, a lot of decisions and uploading. It helps to have a clear vision in your head before you reach this stage. Again I took another ISBN because each format needs its own number. I’m guessing this is a Lulu thing since it never applied to my other releases with the same ISBN across multiple formats. But they’re free, so whatever. Downside is I had to order a print proof (at my cost of $7.60) to be certain the book is exactly like I want it before it goes to Amazon/ B& N/etc.… It’s currently up at Lulu now in paperback, but I’m still waiting for my copy to arrive. So that will be a slower process. Live and learn.

# 9—Releasing. Now that they are both created and released and available at least somewhere, I wish I had started the previous step a little sooner. Not that it matters really. Now it’s just waiting to see when Amazon, B& N and the others accept it or if I’ll have to make modifications to be accepted. It sounds like the eBook is a done deal and just needs time to Que. The paperback first has to arrive, I need to read it and be sure it’s 100 percent okay-dokey. Then it still takes time to go through that Que. If it had to be out by a certain time, this could be a problem, fortunately it’s just my impatience shining through.

# 10–Etc. Cetera promo! Since I never got around to reading those stacks of downloads, I just handled promo the best I could on my time schedule and budget. First, I purchased a blog tour, then the company shut down. Bummer. Next I started lining up visits on every blog I could think of. I get so many emails and Facebook postings and such—like I’m sure everyone does. And every one that offered any kind of promotion I grabbed it. Most are free or low cost. I sent out queries and racked up a nice list of people willing to highlight me. Some were at a fee or giveaway too. But I’d been pinching my budget dollars all year in anticipation of throwing it all on this release. I also am a huge fan of Canva and use it for so much of my promotional graphics. So I designed a “Coming soon” graphic and pinned it on top of all my social media sites. Then I made it a point to post something, anything regularly so people would see my name on their feed, and see the pinned graphic to get to the new post. Tricky?? Naw, just finally understanding how that stuff works. Basically my promo plan has been to throw a big net over any source of promo that I can afford and see where it leads. Probably not the best plan ever, and I’d hoped to have something more solid before now, but with my crazy work schedule, it’s the best I can do. Maybe by next year things will settle down personally, and it will still be a new enough release I can focus on other avenues.

Someday I hope to do another self-release. There is a non-fiction manuscript, about 50,000 words that I’d like to see out there. So what would I do differently? Give myself a full year instead of 6-7 months. I’d read those stacks of downloads first. I’d use a different editor and maybe another self-publishing platform too. Mostly it’s just to compare platforms. Beyond that, I wouldn’t really change much. The biggest thing is it’s amazing how much time it takes to self-publish. Ty’s book was easy to fit into my schedule in a few weeks, last year, so I was fooled into thinking this year would be just as easy. I definitely needed more time to plan the promo before creating.

One final thought, something important to think about when self-pubbing… belonging to a traditional house comes not only with a team of experts to do much of these things, but the support of other authors to network with, celebrate with, commiserate with and bounce ideas off of. Going solo not only drops all the responsibility into the selfer’s shoulders, it also removes the author network.

Blurb

Ivey London who lost her military husband, tried to move on with their son, her Alzheimer’s mother, and a boss attracted to her. She finds him alive and amnesiac five years later. Armed with inexpiable abilities, he is pursued by a forceful group determined to reclaim him. Ivey is just as determined to keep her late husband. Together, they uncover what happened to him, who is after him, and search for how to reclaim what they once were–husband and wife.

Excerpt

“No, that’s okay. I can do this by myself.” She spun around, blinking. Picking up the paring knife again, she began peeling. She gasped as his arms gently encircled her waist and his breath fanned her bare neck. His lips nuzzled her ear and she closed her eyes. His hand took the knife from her fingers and she leaned into his touch.

“Keegan,” his name came out in a throaty rumble as her eyes slid closed.

“I don’t know what we used to do, Ivey, but I can tell you miss it bad. I’m willing to try and be your husband again, if you’ll help me.”

Hot tears stung her eyes. She swallowed hard. “So many times you said I was unforgettable. I…I guess–.”

The comment died unfinished, and his fingers reached down and caressed her back. Electric jolts shivered along her spine.

“Don’t push me away, Ivey. Let me be in each part of your life.”

Her breath hitched. This should be easy. Just tell him how they used to cook, what his favorite foods were, what they shared, how they made wonderful love. And miraculously all his memories will reappear. Except it hadn’t worked yet.

From the distant reaches of her mind, Ivey heard the phone ringing. Before she could pull herself away from the counter, it stopped. Assuming Jory answered it, the whole episode passed from her mind. Right now, Keegan took all her focus.

His fingertips trailed lazily up and down her back, igniting tiny fires in their wake.

“Keegan….I….” Words failed her. Heart beating frantically like a wild bird locked in a cage, her mind surrendered.

He gently turned her around, cupping her chin and tilting her up. Drawing a husky breath, he lowered his lips to hers, winding his fingers in the tangle of her hair. Her arms moved to encircle his waist, slipping under his shirt to feel the raised scars and corded muscles. A guttural moan escaped her.

Finally, having lost all concept of time, she pulled apart. Noble, he would not go further with a woman he did not remember making love to. She might respect his intention and restraint, but the unmet need was also killing her. Pulling in a shaky breath, she ended the kiss, stepping away and picking up the paring knife again.

She ran her tongue over her lips, more to steady herself, and rested one hand on the counter for balance. “I can work on this if you want to go see what Jory and Mom are doing.”

Keegan stiffened, hesitated and studied her. For a chilling moment, she hoped he ignored her request and lifted her bodily to carry her away to the bedroom. Then a darkness entered his eyes, a sadness that cut into her chest.

“Yes. Of course.” Spinning, he exited, leaving her alone with the ghosts of what had been.

Damn, damn, damn.

Buy Links

Lulu | iTunes | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Bio

Ryan Jo Summers writes romances that blur the lines of subgenres. She mixes contemporary with time travel, Christian, suspense, sweet, and paranormal like blending a fruit and yogurt smoothie. Her non-fiction works have appeared in numerous trade journals and magazines including ‘WNC Woman Magazine’, ‘Critter Magazine’, ‘Journey Devotions’, and ‘Vet Tech Journal’. She is a regular contributing author for the ‘Asheville Pet Gazette’.

Her hobbies include baking, crafts, gardening, enjoying nature, and chess/mah-jongg/word-find puzzles. She pet sits/dog walks when she’s not busy writing and she fosters homeless pets for area animal rescues.

She lives in a century-old cottage in North Carolina with her own menagerie of rescued pets and way too many houseplants. “September’s Song” is her second self-published work, the first one being the chronicles of the first two years with her adopted PTSD rescue collie.

Media Links

Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Google | Amazon | BookBub

Spotlight on Liar Liar

Posted on by Joanne Guidoccio

I’m happy to welcome best-selling author Nancy Boyarksy. Today, Nancy shares her new release, Liar Liar.

Blurb

Nicole Graves finds herself in the crosshairs when she reluctantly agrees to babysit a witness in a high-profile rape trial. Mary Ellen Barnes is suing her university’s star quarterback for rape when the authorities won’t act. In the court of public opinion, Mary Ellen appears to be the quintessential, pious, good girl. But her lies and mysterious comings and goings lead Nicole to suspect that she’s not what she seems.

Excerpt

Nicole heard a sound and came in from the balcony in time to see Mary Ellen, now fully dressed, slip out the front door. Nicole ran after her. She couldn’t allow the girl to run off after what she’d said about the hopelessness of her predicament. By the time Nicole got to the elevator bank, it was empty. The girl was already on her way down.

Nicole couldn’t take the stairs; she was on the tenth floor. But the elevator bank had four cars, and luck was with her. Moments later, the door to another elevator opened. When she reached the lobby, she caught sight of Mary Ellen through the window. She had just left the building and was jaywalking across Ocean Avenue toward the beach.

Nicole rushed after her. The wind was picking up, blowing through her jacket. She was halfway across the street, when a car heading south skidded to a stop a few feet away. The driver leaned on his horn and opened his window to scream at her. She ignored him, trying to keep Mary Ellen in sight. The girl seemed to be headed toward the shoreline. When Nicole reached the sand, she started running. She was in good shape, but running on the beach was completely different from a morning jog around the neighborhood. Her shoes sank into the soft surface, making it impossible to gain momentum. Meanwhile, sand leaked into her shoes, chafing her sockless feet.

The beach near the waterline was dark, and Mary Ellen was no longer in sight. Nicole looked desperately around, trying to figure out which way the girl had gone. All at once she stumbled over something lying in her path. As she hit the sand, the figure she’d tripped over slowly sat up, like a zombie in a horror film.

Author Bio and Links

Nancy Boyarsky is the bestselling author of the award-winning Nicole Graves Mysteries.

Before turning to mysteries, Nancy coauthored Backroom Politics, a New York Times notable book, with her husband, Bill Boyarsky. She has written several textbooks on the justice system as well as articles for publications including the Los Angeles Times, Forbes, and McCall’s. She also contributed to political anthologies, including In the Running, about women’s political campaigns. In addition to her writing career, she was communications director for political affairs for ARCO.

Liar Liar is the third Nicole Graves novel, following The Swap and The Bequest, each of which can be read as a stand alone. Readers are invited to connect with Nancy through her website.

Website | Goodreads | Twitter

Giveaway

Nancy Boyarsky will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour. Enter here.

Follow Nancy on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour. You can find out more here.


10 Interesting Facts about Lake Superior

Posted on by Joanne Guidoccio

I’m happy to welcome Amazon International best-selling author Judy Penz Sheluk to the Power of 10 series. Today, Judy shares interesting facts about Lake Superior and her latest release, Past & Present.

Here’s Judy!

Earlier this year, I established my own publishing imprint, Superior Shores Press. As a traditionally published author, it was a decision I thought long and hard about, but after three years and three books, I felt ready to take the plunge.

Deciding on a name for the company was actually pretty easy. Although our main residence is in New Tecumseth, Ontario, we also own a cottage on Lake Superior, not far west of Sault Ste. Marie. Yes, it’s a long drive (7 ½ hours), but as you can see from the pictures, it’s a perfect writing retreat.

Sunset at Judy’s Cottage on Lake Superior

Gibbs Sheluk Enjoys the View

The first book released under the Superior Shores Press imprint is Past & Present, Book 2 in the Marketville Mystery series. And now, here are 10 interesting facts about Lake Superior.

1. Lake Superior is the largest of the Great Lakes, shared by Ontario to the north, Minnesota to the west, and Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to the south.

2. The Ojibwe name for the lake is kitchi-gummi or gichi gami, meaning great sea or great water. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote the name as “Gitche Gumee” in The Song of Hiawatha, as did Gordon Lightfoot in his song, The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

3. According to the University of Wisconsin, the Objibways believe Lake Superior is protected by Nanabijou, Spirit of the Deep Sea Water.

4. The average depth of Superior is about 500 feet. The deepest point in Lake Superior (about 40 miles north of Munising, Michigan) is 1,300 feet (400 meters) below the surface.

5. Superior holds about 3,000 cubic miles of water— enough to fill all the other Great Lakes plus Lake Erie three times over. Its volume is second only to Russia’s Lake Baikal.

6. The surface area of Lake Superior (31,700 square miles or 82,170 square kilometers) is greater than the combined areas of Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New Hampshire.

7. The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum approximates 6,000 ships and 30,000 lives lost in Lake Superior shipwrecks. Thanks to Gordon Lightfoot, one of the best known is the Edmund Fitzgerald, which lost her entire crew of 29 men on Lake Superior November 10, 1975, 17 miles north-northwest of Whitefish Point, Michigan.

8. Because of its location north of Lake Huron, which was discovered first by Brûlé, the lake’s name comes from the French word lac supérieur, which means “upper lake.”

9. The lake is about 350 miles (563 km) in length and 160 miles (257 km) in width. If straightened out, the Lake Superior shoreline could connect Duluth and the Bahama Islands.

10. In the summer, the sun sets more than 35 minutes later on the western shore of Lake Superior than at its southeastern edge.

About Past & Present

Sometimes the past reaches out to the present…

It’s been thirteen months since Calamity (Callie) Barnstable inherited a house in Marketville under the condition that she search for the person who murdered her mother thirty years earlier. She solves the mystery, but what next? Unemployment? Another nine-to-five job in Toronto?

Callie decides to set down roots in Marketville, take the skills and knowledge she acquired over the past year, and start her own business: Past & Present Investigations.

It’s not long before Callie and her new business partner, best friend Chantelle Marchand, get their first client: a woman who wants to find out everything she can about her grandmother, Anneliese Prei, and how she came to a “bad end” in 1956. It sounds like a perfect first assignment. Except for one thing: Anneliese’s past winds its way into Callie’s present, and not in a manner anyone—least of all Callie—could have predicted.

Bio

Judy Penz Sheluk is the Amazon international bestselling author of the Glass Dolphin Mysteries (The Hanged Man’s Noose; A Hole in One) and the Marketville Mysteries (Skeletons in the Attic; Past & Present). Her short stories appear in several collections.

Judy is also a member of Sisters in Crime International, Sisters in Crime – Guppies, Sisters in Crime – Toronto, International Thriller Writers, Inc., the South Simcoe Arts Council, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where she serves on the Board of Directors, representing Toronto/Southwestern Ontario.

Find her at http://www.judypenzsheluk.com.

Find Past & Present in trade paperback at all the usual suspects, and on Amazon Kindle for an introductory price of $2.99 (reg. $5.99) and Kindle Unlimited.
Buy Link: http://authl.it/afj

Spotlight on A Reason to Stay

Posted on by Joanne Guidoccio

I’m happy to welcome author Linda Charles. Today, Linda shares her latest release, A Reason to Stay.

Blurb

Rachael, a successful lawyer in Sydney, returns to her foster family and the only place that ever felt like home: Mindalby, to help with the failing family business, the town’s bakery. With the cotton gin’s closure, all businesses are struggling, and it looks like the only option is to close up the bakery and hope to sell. But when Rachael returns, she realises that her skills give her other options: refreshing and revitalising the bakery and a chance to rekindle her love of baking.

Irishman, Mike O’Malley is a staying kind of man, looking to settle down in Mindalby with a woman who loves the wild country and wants to get involved in the community. Rachael is not that girl, but the attraction is hard to deny. Determined to show Rachael that Mindalby can be a home, he draws her out into the community and deeper into his life. But when it comes time to make a decision, can he trust Rachael to risk her heart?

Excerpt

‘Sorry,’ she said. ‘I don’t play ball.’

He hugged the ball close to his chest. He understood that. None of his sisters were into sport either. But, he loved his sports; it was a major part of his life.

‘What do you play then? I’m up for anything.’

She rubbed her hands against the afternoon chill, as her clear blue eyes met his. His heart hammered. They were the prettiest eyes he’d ever seen, and if he wasn’t careful his concentration would take a serious hit, and he’d sound like some daft prick.

‘I’m not very sporty. How did they go?’

Mike shook his head. ‘Another loss,’ he all but whispered.

She gave him a soft smile. ‘Oh, that happens. Are you having a reconnoitre with them?’

His lips quivered, but he couldn’t hold back. He let out a belly laugh.

She’s gorgeous. A one-off.

Buy Links

Amazon (Australia) | Amazon (US) | Barnes & Noble

Author Bio and Links

Linda Charles is a contemporary romance writer who lives in Newcastle in the Hunter Valley, NSW. She was born and raised in Sydney where she studied and taught drama for many years. She loves to read, travel and enjoys a good conversation. Following a move to the Hunter Valley she started to write her own stories. Linda is a member of the Hunter Romance Writers, Romance Writers of Australia, and Romance Writers of America.

You can visit Linda at her Webpage; or follow her on Twitter; Facebook, or Pinterest

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest

Giveaway

Linda Charles will be awarding a $15 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Enter here.

Follow Linda on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour. You can find out more here.


Interview with Bentley Wells

Posted on by Joanne Guidoccio

I’m happy to welcome Black Opal author Bentley Wells. Today, Bentley chats about his writing process and shares his latest release, The Question and Other Stories.

Describe your process for naming your characters.

I do not necessarily have a process for naming my characters. Generally, names come to me. Sometimes, I will change the first or last name of a character because I do not like it or because I have another character with the same first or last name.

Are you a plotter or a pantser?

I would say that I am a plotter, although I will change something―especially if I do not like it or if what I have written interferes with something else.

Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind?

I do not listen to music when I write; it distracts me.

What is your most productive time of the day?

My most productive time of the day is morning, between 8 a.m. and noon.

What motivates you to write?

I enjoy researching and writing, especially nonfiction. However, “The Question and Other Stories” is my second book of fiction that has been published. In fact, a few of the stories in the collection were published in literary magazines years ago, before these and the others were revised for the collection.

Who are some of your favorite authors?

My favorite authors include Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John O’Hara, Raymond Chandler, James M. Cain, and Erskine Caldwell. Among modern writers, I read Linwood Barclay, John Grisham, and others who write mysteries or suspense. I also read a lot of nonfiction.

Do you have any writing rituals?

I do not have any writing rituals, except researching occupations of my characters and locations.

Where is your favorite place to write?

My favorite place to write is in my office, which is in my house.

Blurb

The Question and Other Stories contain several tales that concern young people who have to deal with hard-nosed teachers, fickle girlfriends, and death of family members, among other topics. Other tales concern adults who have to confront loneliness, rejection, and mental illness.

Excerpt

Andrew Martin entered the Rogers Public Library like he had for the past five years, always courteous to those who were exiting or entering. Indeed, he would open the door for them and nod his head in greeting.

As he passed the front counter, he spoke to the employees who were behind it. He always smiled and spoke to these people. “Good evening,” he would say, and the employees always replied.

He was very well liked in the community. He gave to the Christian Church every Sunday. In addition, he gave large amounts of money to various charitable organizations. How he had become the president of the Rogers State and Federal Bank was simply through hard work on his part. The idea of him becoming president because of his marriage to the bank’s biggest stockholder never entered his mind―not for one minute―because he had worked continuously every working day, including Wednesday afternoons when it was customary for the bank to close early. He would say his “Good days” to his fellow employees as they left and remain to learn the business.

Buy Links

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords | KOBO | Black Opal Books | iTunes | Scribd

Social Media Links

Amazon | Goodreads

Spotlight on Another Five Minutes

Posted on by Joanne Guidoccio

I’m happy to welcome author Destiny Booze. Today, Destiny shares her new release, Another Five Minutes.

Blurb

Loving him is easy.

Fearing him is necessary.

Trusting him could be a deadly mistake.

Born deaf and living with an anxiety disorder, Brooke Hartley manages life in five-minute intervals. It’s all she can do to get out of bed each morning. She’s hidden inside her sister’s apartment for over a year.

Everything changes when Brooke’s sister goes missing. Her fragile world crashes. She is desperate to find her, and she’ll need help.

Haunted by a past he needs to forget, Scott Derrico keeps to himself until his gallery manager, Autumn Hartley, suddenly disappears. He is forced out of his isolation to help a woman that needs him with a terrifying intensity.

Scott tries to deny his attraction to Brooke. He doesn’t want to get emotionally involved but he craves her like nothing else. And, for her, he is a dark and sexy diversion to overcome her fear.

With a genuinely flawed and relatable heroine and a mysterious and protective hero, you won’t want this love story to end. You’ll beg…for another five minutes…

Excerpt

Brooke turned back to Scott, making a clawing motion and scrunching up her face in the most adorable look ever. He wasn’t sure what she was saying to him, but he thought he understood the gist of it. “Everyone says my paintings are too dark.”

She shook her head and reached for his hand. She wrote, A.N.G.R.Y.

“True,” he offered.

She turned the tables on him, staring hard. It was only fair since he’d been staring at her all day. She gestured out of the room with a shrug.

“No, the one in the living room isn’t angry,” he said, but he wasn’t going to talk about that. Trying to distract her, he moved forward, closer than what was comfortable between acquaintances. He wanted to get her mind on something other than asking about that painting.

“I guess I paint what I feel at the time. Do you want to know what I would paint right now?”

Looking nervous, she didn’t answer. He could see her chest rise and fall as her breathing came quicker, and he liked it.

He should have left her alone. He’d brought her here to protect her, to make her feel comfortable. But, he couldn’t make himself do the right thing. Instead, he moved in even closer, reached for her hair, and pulled out the band holding it back in a ponytail. It fell to her waist, and he fanned it out, loving the feel of the silky texture sliding through his fingers.

Her eyes went wide open, and he heard her next breath come out in a rush.

“I would paint you.”

buynow

Author Bio and Links

Destiny Booze is an interesting name, true? Destiny’s mom found her first name in a romance book. Her last name was a gift from the man she loves.

She writes novels with intense conflicts, ongoing suspense, romance, and happy endings. She grew up at a campground where she spent her summers working long hours mowing, cleaning bathrooms, lifeguarding, and leading activities.

Destiny resides in Botetourt County, Virginia where she strives to be the best wife, mother, and writer that she can be. Her family is always priority number one. Other things of great importance to her are friends and her readers!

Follow Destiny on Amazon, Facebook, Twitter, or her website. Go to her website and sign up for her mailing list for updates on book releases and book giveaways.

Website | Amazon | Facebook | Twitter

Giveaway

Destiny Booze will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour. Enter here.

Follow Destiny on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour. You can find out more here.