Yeah. My creativity for blog post titles is pretty much shot. And so this is me whining about getting ready to head to RWA’s National Conference in Orlando.
But Cam, RWA offers the most comprehensive, thoroughly thoughtful, celeb-author-studded workshops EVAH. What’s the deal with your incessant screeching?
Well, I’m glad you asked. In fact, I have a LIST for why I’m running around my house with virtually no hair, a few new zits, and clad in clothes I wore ALL WEEKEND LONG:
#1 I have not packed.
#2 I have not finished my laundry of things that I *think* I may or may not pack.
#3 I did not have time to get a manicure, pedicure, brow wax, lip wax, any other kind of wax, or haircut. I will be that hairy bushwoman standing in the corner with granny shoes because my feet will be the fugliest ones in Orlando.
#4 I have not finished polishing Life After Send.
#5 I just now got around to viewing and printing out the workshop schedule. My mind is spinning because I have about 5 too many time conflicts which means I will need to make a game-time decision and have I ever mentioned to you that I’m NOT GOOD at making game-time decisions? No? Gah! I hate prioritizing when they’re all priorities!
#6 I am not a morning person. There are several workshops and meetings that require me to wake up before my leisurely time of 7:45am. My sleep cycle is already screwed by this because for the past three nights, I’ve laid awake stressing out about how I won’t be able to wake up on time. Do you see my dilemma here, peeps?
#7 WHAT SHOES AM I GOING TO BRING????
#8 I have only practiced my Just-In-Case-An-Agent-Wants-Me-To-Pitch-Her-In-The-Bathroom-While-She’s-Asking-Me-For-Toilet-Paper pitch 372 times. I need to practice at least 12,841 times for it to not sound like I’m a royal tool with a bucket of marshmallows in my mouth.
#9 DID I MENTION I HAVEN’T PACKED YET?!?!
#10 I will miss Toddler Trouble. And BicycleDude. A lot.
But despite all my whining displayed in all its gloriousness, there are still a few super stellar, awesome, full-of-fantastic reasons why all this belly-aching stress will be worth it:
I will get to hang with cool peeps. I will get to learn until my poor little brain begs me to stop soaking it all in. I will get to see Authors of Awesome in person and hopefully meet them and get their Books of Awesome signed too. I will be in Orlando (I hear it’s the Happiest Place on Earth). I will get to pretend I’m singing karaoke. I will get to meet new cool peeps, like TWITSOM, who is already full of Awesome that I’m sure the two of us in the same room together will surely make it explode. I will be present in the face of inspiration (times, like, a few thousand) as the Swan & Dolphin Resort is infiltrated by mad talent.
Romance Divas is starting their 3-month-long boot camp next week. I applied, got accepted (but really, everyone got accepted), and found out I scored an amazingly awesome mentor who is awesome. Did I mention that?
So who’s this amazingly awesome mentor that is awesome? None other than GWEN FREAKING HAYES!!!!!! What’s even cooler? She has her own mugs. This. Rocks. My. Socks.
Not a long post because I’ve got some writing to do on my contemp YA before I’m torn apart and glued back together.
I haven’t blogged a new release in forever…well, since October because as everyone knows by now, November was sucked up by NaNo.
Here’s the newest release from a Diva – Jennifer Leeland, with her debut Samhain release (WARNING: Shield your eyes if you’re under 18):
“The Christmas She Rules” Control is her kink…and she’s losing it.
It’s another gloomy Christmas for Pamela Dane. Not only is it the anniversary of a dark period in her life, but all her friends had the nerve to hook up. It’s not easy for a female Domme to find a playmate. Maybe The Cage in San Francisco will be the perfect place to escape—and find a willing man to chase away the memories.
Christian Nolan is at the BDSM club for the hell of it. Yet the minute Mistress Dane takes control of him, she not only stuns him with her talent, he stuns himself with his willingness to surrender. Her offer to meet him there for another night is intriguing—and frightening.
Pamela’s session with Chris shakes her to the core, resurrecting memories she’s afraid to face. But Chris isn’t willing to let her past haunt her…even if it leaves his heart in tatters.
Warning: Hot, strong man on his knees, which will bring you to yours. Strap-on action, anal play, lots of leather and tons of tension. Alpha male who likes to do whatever the right woman tells him to do, including another woman.
Man, I love me some Tuesday releases! Check out these books from a few fellow divas. Enjoy!
Scent of Cin by Ella Drake
Death brought Cin her love, a sexy half-demon she can’t resist
Half-demon Vedo resurrects the newly-dead Cinnamon Murphy, detective, bane of the Hellions — and all woman. Vedo needs her to find his son, product of a forced union with a powerful demoness, but Vedo gets more than he bargains for. Once Cin is no longer a shade, her scent becomes a lure his Nephilim nature can’t resist. Cin finds that being raised from the dead gives her uncontrollable cravings for heat, especially for the hot man who needs her help, a man she’s sworn to kill.
And Kendal Ashby has a new release for her novella, Chasing Sunrise. She has a contest going on until 10/13 with cool prizes. Check out her blog for details.
Here’s her blurb:
Chasing Sunrise
Megan Chase is vacationing at an all-inclusive Caribbean resort when her friend Sadie hits it off with another guest at the resort. She finds herself kicked out of her room. She spends the night in the hot tub and wandering the beach with a handsome stranger by her side. As the two get to know each other, Megan struggles to control her growing desire for a man who is supposed to marry someone else next month.
Keith Gates’s best man, Doug, dragged him on a makeshift bachelor trip to the beachfront resort. Before he left home, Keith learned his fiancee had been cheating on him and now faces the tough decision to forgive her or end the relationship. Ditched by his best friend, Keith spends time with Megan. As the night turns to early morning, Keith fights his growing attraction for Megan. He’s not a free man and refuses to take advantage of her. Is their night together bad timing, or the clear sign he was hoping to find?
Genre: Contemporary
Rating: Sweet
Book Length: Short Story
Price: $2.99
It’s that time again – Release Day! Romance Diva extraordinaire, Crystal Jordan, has a new anthology out with Kensington Aphrodisia- Under the Covers. Her story is Naughty or Nice and it’s just in time for the holidays. Not to mention this cover is HOT!
Check it out:
“Naughty or Nice” in Under the Covers anthology, by Crystal Jordan
Dayna Sharp has the perfect job, the perfect man…the perfect life. So why is the prospect of marrying Mr. Wonderful so perfectly boring? It’s a question Dayna can’t shake when she brings her fiance home to meet her spectacularly un-boring family–and finds herself pursued by a bad-boy bearing gifts that could burn a hole in more than her Christmas stocking…
When Elaina Matthews ran into Sebastian Ramos at his grandmother’s house, she never expected it would lead to another night of wild sex. Or to a relationship.
Sebastian knows what he wants and that’s Elaina in his life and in his bed, forever. He moves full-steam ahead in getting her to agree to a relationship. But will his desire for Elaina overwhelm her and end their relationship before it really starts. And there is another problem on the horizon for the new couple – what will his family say when they discover he’s dating his brother’s ex?
It’s Tuesday. You know what that means…releases, releases, releases! Check out these hot stories by Inez Kelley and Ciar Cullen!
Myla by Moonlight by Inez Kelley is now available from Samhain Publishing
Magic bites… and its name is Myla.
Created at Prince Taric’s birth, Myla is a spell, an enchantment designed to appear and protect him when he needs it most. She has always been content to do her duty…until one night of forbidden passion leaves her longing to experience life—and love—as a mortal woman. Yet the risk is too great. Even if her blood runs as red as his, she can never give him the one thing he needs: a child.
Taric’s blessing—and his curse—is knowing the kingdom’s future depends on his producing an heir to continue the bloodline. His bond with Myla has always been that of protector and protected. When it suddenly becomes something much more, he unwittingly sentences his people to certain death.
An old enemy is plotting to destroy all he holds dear: his lands, his people, his father, and his lover. And this time, even if they fight tooth and blade, their shared magic may not be enough to save them…
Love—it’s the real thing. And complicated as hell…
Archeologist Eliza Schneider assumes her meeting with an exotic stranger in the Egyptian desert was a heat-induced hallucination…until he materializes in New York. She has to give the tall, handsome Egyptian high marks for originality with his pick-up line: they’re fated to save the world together. The master/servant thing goes a long way toward sweeping her off her feet, but it’s easier to believe he’s just another in her long line of poor romantic choices.
Kasdeya, the Fifth Satan, waited eons for his Keeper to find her way to his tomb amongst the ancient ruins. He only has a limited time to convince Eliza that her role is critical to help defeat the loathsome Deumos, a female demon who has laid her claim to bearing his child—a child that will bring down mortals.
Trouble is, Eliza doesn’t even believe Kasdeya is real. If he can’t convince her he isn’t an illusion—and neither is their love—Deumos will win.
September brings with it some much anticipated releases. Give some love and check out these fab writers and fellow Romance Divas:
All Fired Up-Kristen Painter
Desire can heal the coldest heart—or burn it to ashes.
Alrik Gunn knows from bitter experience that change isn’t always for the better. From the woman who annihilated his Viking clan to the goddess who tricked him into centuries of slavery, betrayal has dogged his existence. The Goddess of Love is going to let him avenge his family, but for a price. As a Phoenix—a merchant of change—he must grant a human woman three chances to change her life.
When former Irish dancer Calleigh McCarthy tosses a carved-bird statue that belonged to her ex into a roaring bonfire, she unwittingly summons an honest-to-god Phoenix. A sexy, irresistible Viking who offers her an unbelievable bonus—three get-out-of-her-crappy-life-free cards. She’ll take it, even if it means guarding her cautious heart against the dark pain behind Alrik’s eyes.
Alrik has vowed never to let love sway him again, but Calleigh’s innocence and kindness throw him off balance. Yet even as his need for revenge fades and his love for her grows, he is bound to let her make her choices without interfering.
One wrongly chosen word, and any chance for happiness—for either of them—will go up in flames. Buy it here.
For this week’s Thursday Thirteen, I thought I would take a note (literally) from other T13ers and put up my playlist for my WIP. Some of these have been around a while but still manage to get my muse in the mood. If you’ve never heard some of them, take a listen. There are some really beautiful, melodic tunes and this list really makes sense with my hero and heroine. Hope you enjoy!
Check out Love Can Be Murder by fellow Romance Diva, Sierra Wolfe!
Alexander Forsythe’s house is haunted. One wouldn’t think a hundred and three year old vampire would let a little ghost bother him, but this particular house guest has outstayed her welcome.
Alex detests witchcraft, but after discovering his ghost, Abbie, is the ancestor of the local witch, Willow Cowan, his choices are limited. Alex calls on Willow to help evict his ghostly tenant, but he begins to wonder if the sexy spell-caster might be more trouble than the ghost.
Willow thinks Alex needs her magical abilities to remove the spirit from his house. What she doesn’t realize is that his specter is her long lost ancestor. She’s not sure she wants to help the gorgeous vampire in his ghost hunt, until she sees a long lost family heirloom on display in Alex’s house.
Alex is adamant that the necklace belongs to him.. It’s been in his family since it was created for the wife of a distant ancestor. The necklace had been given to every wife of the first born son. He’s reluctant to give away his precious heirloom to a witch.
Can they learn to work together and get past their differences? Or will Abbie be the one obstacle they can’t remove?
You can check it out at The Wild Rose Press. Remember, it’s available on Wednesday August 26, 2009!
For more information on me and what I’m working on, stop by my website. I’d love the company!
Cambria Dillon - YA Writer
