Is it fall yet???

Okay - I admit it... I'm a wuss when it comes to hot weather. I have to slather on SPF 40, I hate to sweat, and my face turns an ugly tomato red when I have to be outside for any length of time. Now, if I could be at beach under a pretty striped umbrella with a breeze off the water and my favorite new book in my lap - well, then I could embrace the whole "hot as hell" idea.

But on my home turf, I'd just as soon not see the mercury hit 90+. My hometown is Chattanooga, and when I talked to my mom the other day, she said Chattanooga had set an "all-time" record of 105 degrees. It had never before ever been that hot in all the years of record keeping.

But enough is enough! The grass is brown. You can burn your hand just opening the metal storm door, and the neighbors' cats are drinking out of our bird baths and terrorizing the pretty finches. Sheesh!

It's so bad that I have almost given up dreaming about hunky heroes and started fantasizing about crisp October days and warm, wooly sweaters.

And by the way, If any of you EVER hear me complain this winter about how cold it is, just shoot me! I'd give my right arm just about now for a pretty six inch snow or even one of those dreary, rainy November days. I guess the grass IS always greener...

We've got some family plans for Labor Day and then it will be back into the writing trenches for me. I'm working on a fun new proposal which I hope will get a nibble of interest from somewhere! And then I have my next contracted book due November 30. And after that it will be Christmas!!

So there you have it, lots of whining from me even though (don't say it too loud) the temps today aren't supposed to get out of the eighties!!

Some of you know that I just got back from a family wedding in Orlando. We spent one day at the Magic Kingdom and despite being baked and wilted, had a great time. Because of my bum knee I had to wear my dorky white tennis shoes instead of my pretty red sandals, but I can only suffer for fashion to a degree. And at least my feet didn't hurt. Mickey is a great guy but a bit short for me. :)

Hope everyone has a great week... and please drop by to share your fantasies of fall with me. We can only dream...

Janice

Interview with Marjorie M. Liu

Coming up!

Putting out a call for questions. If you read Marjorie's work and have questions, your chance to ask them is coming up.

If you have one that you'd like me to use in the interview, email them to me @
shilohwalker@gmail.com and put QUESTIONS for MARJORIE in the subject line.

I will say this, that lady has had some of the best covers I've ever seen.


:o)

why i'm glad life isn't like a romance book

Last week, Karen Scott had a post about how romances make our expectations unrealistic. (yes, there are still people out there harping on this...geex, they need to get a life.) You can read the post here, BUT... don't read it at work. Karen's blog could probably get you in trouble.

I like reading romance. Love it. But would I trade my life for the lives of a woman who lives between the pages of a book? Nope. Not a one. Not Cherijo (yeah, she is sci fi, but she's like my fave heroine so she's on the list) Not Eve (yes, ladies, I'd pass on a chance to be married to Roarke) not one of the ladies from the BDB books(JR Ward), even though I love to read them and not one of the ladies from the Irish Jewels trilogy, even though I would love to live in Ireland.

Why not, you ask?

Oh, lots of reasons. Here's a few

• Cherijo is married to one heck of a guy but when she's ticked off or in danger, her husband can use his mind to control her body. That would seriously piss me off.
• Eve is constantly getting all these gorgeous coats, only to get them ruined by blood, gore and grim.
• I'd never been able to keep my Ben & Jerrys safe from the BDB books. They get hurt, they turn to ice cream to smear on the wounds. Sorry, that's a waste of good yumminess.
• As much as I'd love to live in Ireland, I can't see me falling in love just to help some cursed fairie prince.

So that's from those books.

Some random ones....

• How many romances heroines have either suffered a big trauma before the book starts or during the books as part of her 'dark moment'?
• A lot of the men are written to almost to perfection. I don't want perfect. Would make me too aware of how unperfect I am.
• I don't resolve issues well, or quick. Romances tend to have nice, neat resolutions.
• Alpha men can be nice to read about but in real life, I'd kill them. I like my DH just fine. He's a mix of alpha and beta and I wouldn't take it any other way. Sorry, I don't see the typical alpha as the ultimate father, husband, etc.

Do I like romances? Yep. Do I want to live in one? Oh, hell no.

Last Plans for Summer

Summer? Was there a summer?? Holy cow, we’re down to the last two weeks and I have no idea where it’s gone! Why can’t winter fly by this fast? I never get nearly as much done as I planned, though that’s pretty much the way of life no matter what time of year it is.

But now that it’s down to the wire I’ve got to cram in a few more things before the leaves fall and there’s that first chill in the air. First I’m going to wear all the white stuff in my closet before I sadly put it away and drag out the fall clothes that I look retched in. I cannot wear fall colors. A deep pink or rust is about it. The rest...blah and I look like a baby elephant in jeans.

We’re definitely having ribs on Labor Day and doing the home-made ice cream thing once more. And I’m hitting the final sales on summer clothes to get a jump start on next year...if there’s anything left. Seems that when I try this all the leftover stuff looks so shabby and picked over.

And I’m running around in bare feet as long as I can get away with it and using my little yellow and white purse a few more times and enjoying the final burst of flowers.

So, what do you have planned for the end of summer? What are you determined to get done before we say good-by to the lazy days and jump into fall and football and getting ready for the holidays?

Hugs,
Dianne
DianneCastell.com
The Morgue the Merrier
Kensington Zebra 9/07

PS—I’ll be giving away I’m Your Santa signed copy (by all three authors Lori Foster, me, Karen Kelley).

And the winners are...

The two winners who won free ebook downloads of Skin to Skin are....

Jodi, who commented

Good questions. I'm off to Samhain to check out more info on your book.

and Bernadette who commented,

Really looking forward to the book :) Thanks for the interview!

The winner of the $15 Gift certificate for Mybookstoreandmore is

Physmom who commented

Hi Bam, I am looking forward to the release of your book. If I didn't have family in this weekend I can guarantee I would be curled up reading it.

Ladies, if you all can email me at shilohwalker@gmail.com and put BAM's contest in the subject line, I'll hook you all up with Dionne. Again, Jodi and Bernadette won Dionne's ebook, Skin to Skin and Physmom won a gift certificate.

Thanks for joining in guys, and Dionne, thank you for doing the interview. Best of luck with Skin to Skin!

Shi
http://shilohwalker.com

Interview with Dionne Galace...aka Bam...

Maybe I should say The Infamous Bam. If you've been in romance blogland for long, you've probably seen her around. Seen and run in fear... just kidding, just kidding. ;o)



Dionne, aka Bam, has a book coming out from Samhain here soon, Skin to Skin and besides doing an interview for us, she's also give away prizes. Three of them...downloads of Skin to Skin and $15 gift certificate to My Bookstore and More and the winner of that GC can buy Dionne's book on Friday, as well as mine...just kidding (although I think that sounds like a bang up list)



How do you win? That's easy. Just comment... BUT your name is only going into the drawing once and by name, I mean one person per ISP~I am keeping track. Only way to be fair to everybody.



Dionne will swing by during the day so feel free to ask questions!



And on to the interview...



Vamps and Scamps Blog Interview with Dionne Galace:


**All of the questions in this interview were suggested by readers at Dionne aka Bam’s blog. Thank you!


V&S: I’m curious, what’s the one thing you would never write? It can cover anything from a sexual situation to a plot too done to just something you wouldn’t want to tackle.


Dionne Galace: Oh damn. I don't really like to say "never". I do enjoy taking the so-called "tired" plots and putting my own twist on it. In fact, I was just wondering the other day what I could do with a "secret baby" or an "amnesia" story. That might be kind of fun.




V&S: How do you get Bam from Dionne Galace?


Dionne Galace: Ha-ha. You don’t. When I was a kid, I used to drive my poor grandmother crazy 'cause I would go around hitting and destroying things with a stick. She said I reminded her of Bamm-Bamm from the Flintstones, so it just kind of stuck. My friends and family still call me Bam. It's just easier to pronounce than "dee-OHN".




V&S: Is there a subgenre you’re dying to write in - witches, vampires, Urban Fantasy etc - and if so, what is it and are you going to try it?


Dionne Galace: I’m actually working on an urban fantasy series right now featuring a woman

with a "strange" gift and her elf sidekick. They own a detective agency. I've got the first four books plotted and outlined. Now I just have to write them.




V&S: If you could be any romance book female lead who would it be and which book (if it’s a series)?


Dionne Galace: I always really liked Esme from Eloisa James' books. She was just a secondary character, but I really liked how spunky and fun she was. I believe she shows up in Duchess in Love, Fool for Love, and A Wild Pursuit. Her lover Sebastian, the Marquess of Bonnington, is still my favorite romance hero to this day.




V&S: It’s 50 years in the future and the only thing you regret in life is an unfortunate tattoo on your ass. What does the tattoo say and why?


Dionne Galace: Well, damn. It's a playboy bunny. It's purely red and right on my tailbone. It looks like it was branded onto my skin. It seemed like a good idea at the time. But I don't even want to be thinking of myself as an 80 year old grandmother with a playboy bunny on my tailbone.



* * * * *

Thanks, Dionne. I'm ready to read Skin to Skin now.

48 Reasons to Read Today's Blog

Mornin' one and all - Hope your Monday is off to a decent start. Today's photo has no particular story behind it, just something to tickle your funny bone. My daughter took it when Anastasia and Ainsley were in the tub being silly.

I'm yawning today... hubby and I watched part of the Perseid meteor shower last night. We left the house around 11 and drove thirty minutes out in the country to a camp... very dark there - no streetlights. We saw 22 meteors in an hour and ten minutes. Pretty cool! Our favorite one was super bright and very slow as it arced across the sky.

But enough of that! Let's get to the reason you are reading this blog today. You know how car lots and furniture stores have big sales to "make room for new inventory"??? Well, lucky for you, my keeper shelf simply has to make room for more books. They are taking over my bedroom. So, even though it pains me deeply to part with these, I am having a contest to give one lucky person 48 trade size romances!!! Yep - You heard me... if I did the math right, that is over $672 worth of books. And they can all be yours!! Plus, these are some of my favorites, so there is not a dud in the bunch!

Here are the rules. 1) This is a snail mail contest. All entries will be mailed to Janice Maynard, P.O. Box 4611, Johnson City, TN, 37602. Your entry must include your name and address (info kept totally private by me). It must be postmarked by August 31st. I will announce the winner in my September 10 blog... and of course, I will notify the winner personally if you choose to include your e-mail in your entry.

One caveat - I almost always open my contests to everyone regardless of where they live, but this time I must limit it to the USA. This box will be very heavy, and I will send it via Media Mail which is not available for overseas purposes. Sorry...

How to enter... your completed entry will consist of a simple list of 11 books. First of all, list my 9 Janice Maynard titles, 8 of which can be found on my website. Do not include any foreign editions. The Christmas book only counts once, even though it came out in trade last Christmas and is being re-released in mass market in October. The ninth book is the new one coming out in January 2008 (not yet on my website). But if you go to www.myspace.com/janicemaynard, you can see that cover and title as the big profile picture.

The tenth and eleventh books are written by my alter ego ELizabeth Scott. Elizabeth does not have a website, but you can see those two titles at www.myspace.com/authorelizabethscott.

Questions? I hope not!! But you can post them here if I have omitted any important details. I'm leaving Wednesday for a wedding in Florida, so I won't be able to answer questions after Tuesday afternoon. Hopefully, I have made this crystal clear, but you never know...

Now for the part you all want to know - the list of prize books. Here they are in no particular order... although they are more or less in order by copyright date, because - yes - I am that anal. :)

Behind Closed Doors

Wilde Thing

Standing in the Shadows

Bad Boys Online

Unexpected

Jingle Bell Rock

Bad Boys to Go

The Wilde Side

The Secret Life of Bryan

Perfect for the Beach

Bad Boys Next Exit

I Love Rogues

Smart Mouth

Undercover

Drive Me Crazy

Southern Comfort

Houston, We Have a Problem

Merry Christmas, Baby

Bad Boys With Expensive Toys

Wicked Women 101

Mouth to Mouth

Just a Hint Clint

Star Qualtiy

The Bane Affair

The Shaughnessey Accord

The Samms Agenda

The Beach Alibi

The McKenzie Artifact

Hello, Gorgeous

Beach Blanket Bad Boys

A Date with the Other Side

Honk if You Love Real Men

Taking Care of Business

Return to Me

3 Brides for 3 Bad Boys

The Night Before Christmas

'Til There Was You

The Hard Stuff

Hot Spell

Valentine's Day is Killing Me

Three

Wild Ride

When Good Things Happen to Bad Boys

Dead and Loving It

Bayou Bad Boys

Drop Dead Gorgeous

Sexy Beast

Her Best Friends' Lover

Good luck!

Janice Maynard

Back to School

Thank God. Seriously. I need to get back to my routine. Today was the first day for my rottens to go back and any minute now, i'll find that illusive routine again.

So here's a totally off the wall question for you.

If you could have any power, (think super power) what would it be by and why?

Me, I'm trying to decide. I wouldn't want to see the future. I try not to worry about the future because that messes up today. Wouldn't want that. I don't want to live forever. Life wouldn't have the same beauty, IMO, if it was anything other than fleeting. We wouldn't be able to appreciate it. Wouldn't want to be a vampire. I'm a nurse, I know all about the things people do to their bodies and I couldn't move past it. Don't want to have magick or anything like that either.

I think I can honestly say that not only do I enjoy my life, I love it as it is. Changing me, or adding some weird power, would change things. I don't like change.

Going to get back to work now... my brain is dead for the heat so I dunno how much I'll get done.

contest

I'm doing a contest for my newsletter group---you can join at www.authorkarenkelley.com It's in three parts and if you enter each contest your name will be put in a drawing for a $25 gift certificate from Amazon. I think I'm giving away a book (Hell On Wheels) and a T-shirt this week.

Anyway, I thought if any of y'all wanted to enter, the first question does the last frame in the video for Double Dating With The Dead say. Now, this is the very, very last frame. Which means you need to watch it to the end. The video is on my website (see above or below) Send your answers to kskelley@classicnet.net with contest #1 in the subject line.

If you don't want to join my newsletter group, that's okay, too, you'll still be in this drawing, just not the one for $25. Yes, I was desperate and needed something to blog about.

Y'all have a nice day!
Karen Kelley
Available Now!!! Close Encounters of the Sexy Kind/Brava
Romantic Times 4 1/2 Stars Top Pick!
09/07 Double Dating With The Dead/Brava
09/07 The Morgue The Merrier anth/Zebra
10/07 I'm Your Santa anth/Brava
www.myspace.com/authorkarenkelley
www.authorkarenkelley.com