Austin has a new wine bar—Vintage Books and Wine www.vintagebooksandwine.com It couldn’t be more perfect for me (and you, too, I think). They have wine, a great atmosphere, wine, a good selection of romances, and wine. All books on the shelves are trade paperbacks or hardcovers so my mass market sized books weren’t available. However, they had an…
I first met Kathy at a Kansas book group. I’d been invited to speak and, boom! Just like that, a friendship started. Every time I am in Kansas, Kathy comes to see me. We laugh, we catch up, and she takes a picture of us holding previous year pictures. It is our inside joke and then we laugh about…
I went to Booklovers Con (https://www.bookloverscon.com ) a few weeks ago. Yes, right before Christmas but not a moment too late. I had a great time. It is true I pretty much have a great time everywhere I go, but this Con was valuable because it reminded me of how important readers are to my creativity. First,…
I received a request for general rules on how to end a good, loving story. Or any story for that matter. Although I HATE writing rules, here are my thoughts. Good endings wrap up loose ends. All questions should be answered. When I start your book, you and I have a pact: I’ll read to the…
I used to avoid book signings until I learned how fun they were with readers ready to have a good time. Now I am a Reader Fan! (In Houston, TX with the wonderful Tessa Dare and the folks at Katy Budget Books) I adore folks who want to celebrate this genre I love so much…
A new friend told me she had read one of my books. Her compliment? “You write good smut, woman.” I smiled. I’ve heard this before from people who believe they are being clever or just have no idea what they are saying about themselves. They think they are talking about me. “We call it sex,…
Sitting in Tucson, waiting to return to wintry Virginia. Got lots going through my mind. . . . the festival was packed with readers and the most incredible authors in the business. I was able to cement old friendships and develop new. Here is what I gleaned from the event: – Social media is becoming…
I need to be around readers, especially those who love the Romance genre as much as I do. It is easy to trivialize what I do. Reading for pleasure in a world full of problems? Ha! But then I connect with readers who value feeding the imagination, who believe reading makes their individual worlds better…
When a paperback novel that would go for $8 in the US is sold for twice and often three times that amount in Australia, you know Aussie romance readers are a dedicated bunch. But my respect for these readers is based on more than a desire to push books. I’d met many of them at…
So my mom died Monday, December 17th. No, wait, this review gets better. Really. My wife and I own hundreds of books. We read voraciously. I have, easily, a dozen books on my nightstand that I am in various stages of reading. I enjoy biographies, sci-fi, epic fantasy, crime drama, literature, just about anything well-written….