July 2009 Contests

Anna Campbell is having a “They Don’t Write Books Like That Any More” contest!

She wants to indulge in some romance nostalgia! Is there anything in the romances you started to read that you don’t see anymore and you’d love to see again? For example, when Anna started reading romances, the writers explored a variety of settings. Some of her favorites from the 70s and 80s are set in 17th-century Spain, 19th-century Russia, Renaissance Italy or medieval France. She’s not saying she’s sick of Regency England, but sometimes it’s nice to go further afield. What about you? Anything you’d like to see in romance novels that doesn’t seem to be available right now?

The prize is a selection of great books you may have missed out on, in keeping with the books of releases past theme:

Your choice of a signed book from Anna’s backlist.

THE GUNSLINGER’S UNTAMED BRIDE by Stacey Kayne

CHRISTMAS PROPOSALS, just in time for Christmas in July – three great novellas by Carole Mortimer, Rebecca Winters and Marion Lennox

DOES SHE DARE? by Tawny Weber

Just email Anna on anna@annacampbell.info with your answer. For more information, visit the contest page on Anna’s website: http://www.annacampbell.info/contest.html. The contest closes 31st July, 2009.

To celebrate the release of ONE RECKLESS SUMMER, Toni Blake is giving away a prize pack that includes
-An autographed copy of ONE RECKLESS SUMMER
-An autographed cover flat
-A tote bag and a coffee mug featuring the book’s gorgeous cover

To enter, just visit her website at http://www.ToniBlake.com and visit the Contests page! Contest ends July 31.

Eloisa James is getting ready for the release of the finale of the “Desperate Duchesses” series, A DUKE OF HER OWN, by giving out fun prizes and sharing a new excerpt! Visit www.eloisajames.com to enter!

Join Samantha James as she takes a Trip Down Memory Lane with all her books. Each month a different book will be highlighted in her contest and one lucky reader will win a signed copy of that book! This month A Perfect Groom shines in the spotlight. www.SamanthaJames.com

Pamela Palmer is celebrating the release of Desire Untamed, the story of the Chief of the shape-shifters, Lyon, and the first book in her Feral Warriors series, with a contest to win a beautiful sterling silver lion charm. Visit her website to enter the contest, which runs through July 30th, at http://www.pamelapalmer.net!

To celebrate her gorgeous new website Janet Mullany is holding a contest on her site through August 1. All you have to do is read an excerpt and answer a question, and your name will be entered into a drawing to win one of two antique prints. Visit www.janetmullany.com to enter!

To celebrate the release of THE INFAMOUS ROGUE, Alexandra Benedict is giving away five autographed copies of the book! For your chance to win, sign up for Alexandra’s newsletter at www.AlexandraBenedict.ca. The winners will be contacted after a random draw on the book’s release date, July 28, 2009. Good luck!

Win signed books! Drawing once a month from my Melodythomas listserve. Visit me at www.MelodyThomas.com. Just sign up for my listserv (bottom of my home page) and you will automatically be in the drawing for new books every month. This month: Win a copy of the first book in my brand new Mystical Bliss series: BEAUTY AND THE DUKE. (July 28, 2009) Beauty and the Duke introduces the cursed Scottish Duke of Sedgwick and a paleontologist in search of a mythical beast. After being laughed out of the scientific community by her father’s peers, Christine Sommers has resigned herself to a sedate life teaching when her past love walks through the door with the greatest find of the century and makes her an offer she can’t refuse. What would you ask for if you could have one wish? This book will be on shelves July 28th.

To celebrate the release of FOUR DUKES AND A DEVIL, Sophia Nash is giving away an autographed copy of A DANGEROUS BEAUTY, named the “Best Regency-set Historical of the Year” by Romantic Times BOOKreviews magazine. Sophia will also include an assortment of signed coverflats from various Avon authors.

To enter, just visit http://www.SophiaNash.com and check out the contest!

Elizabeth Boyle is celebrating summer reading with her two recent releases–CONFESSIONS OF A LITTLE BLACK GOWN and MEMOIRS OF A SCANDALOUS RED DRESS– perfect back to back stories for the beach, poolside, or weekend stay-cation. Drop by elizabethboyle.com before July 31st and enter on her contest page to win a $25 gift card to Barnes & Noble.

Read a brand new excerpt from WITH SEDUCTION IN MIND on Laura Lee Guhrke’s website! Make sure to enter Laura’s contest, too. You could win a signed copy of The Wicked Ways of a Duke!! Visit www.lauraleeguhrke.com.

Book titles, they’re a real pain in the you-know-what.  For me, anyway.  Either my mind goes completely blank or I end up with something totally inappropriate.  As for asking my husband… he believes a rake is something you use in the garden!  So, more often than not the title is chosen by my editor after discussions with her colleagues and I agree.  That’s probably the way it is for most authors.

But titles are important.  They have to call to you from the bookshelf, intrigue you when you read them, urge you to buy this book and discover what it’s all about.  There have been some great titles over the years:  Gone with the Wind, Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice.

I always think a title has to evoke something of the story you’re telling.  For instance, my latest, Led Astray By A Rake, is fairly self explanatory   Or is it?  Olivia Monteith is in love with a man who everyone else believes is a rake.  Wicked Nic has a reputation as a bad boy while Olivia is a proper young lady.  On the surface it appears Olivia is being led astray by this rake, but the truth of the matter is it’s Olivia who’s doing the leading astray.  She’s seducing the rake and he’s falling in love with her and fighting her every inch of the way.

When I’m writing a series I try to chose titles with something in common.  For instance, the Greentree Sisters series was supposed to have a school/educational theme because Aphrodite, the Courtesan, was tutoring the girls in seduction.  So I had Lessons in Seduction, Rules of Passion and Mistress of Scandal.  When writing my Medieval series I tried to think of titles incorporating the heroine’s name, which was also a flower, and the hero, who was represented by a piece of medieval weaponry.  So I had The Lily and the Sword, and The Rose and the Shield.  The third book began life as the Briar and the…hmm, but that was the trouble.  You can’t have the Briar and the Lance or the Briar and the Big Javelin.  And the Briar and the Ball and Chain is just plain silly.  So we ditched that idea and the title became Once He Loved, with the final book as Kissing the Bride.

I can see I’m going to have a problem with Book #2 in the Husband Hunters Club series.  Led Astray By A Rake is a great start, but what next?

What do you think?

–Sara Bennett

People often ask me where I get the ideas for my books.  The truth is, ideas are all around us every day–on the internet, in the news, at the dinner table.  Writers are human sponges; we observe and store all kinds of quirky things about the things we see and hear.  And the funny thing is, we don’t even realize we’re doing it.  Many’s the time I’ve been writing some secondary character and suddenly realize that he or she has some characteristic of someone I know!

My new release, TO RUIN THE DUKE, was inspired by a contemporary issue that is all over the news these days–identity theft.  In our electronic world, it can be frighteningly easy for someone halfway across the world to steal your identity simply because they have somehow gotten your social security number, driver’s license number or some other bit of personal information.  There are even stories about people posing as mail carriers going into people’s mailboxes and stealing their bills, then using the info they get from that to open up accounts in your name.  Very scary stuff!

But I write historical romances.  How can I base a historical romance on the 21st century issue of identity theft?  It’s all in how you twist it.

Back in the Regency time period when TO RUIN THE DUKE takes place, credit was offered based on who a person appeared to be.  If a guy who looks like the duke drives up to your shop in a carriage that bears his ducal crest, and if he is dressed well and acts appropriately, he could convince the proprietor to open an account in his name. He would then charge a bunch of stuff and take off, leaving the bills to go to the real duke.

In the book, the real Duke of Wyldehaven (Wylde to his friends) has been sequestered at his estate for the past couple of years, mourning the deaths of his wife and unborn son and working hard on the opera he is writing.  It is only when Wylde is called back to London for the funeral of a friend that he finds out an imposter has been running around London causing trouble in his name.  Not only has this guy been running up bills with the tailors and at Tattersalls, but he has been getting into scrapes and seducing ladies as well.  It is only when Miranda Fontaine arrives on his doorstep with a baby she claims is his son that Wylde realizes how far the masquerade has gone.

Our heroine does not believe his protestations of innocence regarding the child’s parentage.  She herself is the illegitimate child of a nobleman and an actress, and never in her life has her father darkened her door.  So when her friend Lettie–who died in childbirth–begged her to see that her baby is raised as befitting a duke’s son, Miranda is determined that THIS baby will know his father.  She goes to London, determined to make the duke do the right thing.

Being wrongly accused is something to which everyone can relate. How horrible would it be to have your word doubted, your reputation shredded by acts you did not commit?  A woman trying to make a man own up to his responsibility to his child is another universal issue that resonates with both men and women.  These are things that still exist in our society today, but they were also alive and well all throughout history. 

As long as there are male and female, I believe there will always be certain conflicts that exist no matter how sophisticated our society.  What do you think?

I don’t know about you, but I love a tortured hero. And as a writer of contemporary romance, I often hear from readers that they are surprised to find my heroes are so tortured, and they go on to say they usually find those types of guys in historicals or paranormals. I will admit I was unaware of that until I heard it a few times – but what can I say? Making my heroes suffer just comes naturally to me. ; )

In my current release, ONE RECKLESS SUMMER (the first book in my new Destiny series), Mick Brody ranks right up there as one of the most tortured guys I’ve ever written. Mick had a very rough home life growing up, with abusive parents and a dangerous older brother who drew Mick down a dark path, but the worst thing for Mick is that when the story begins, he has a big, big, life-or-death-size secret – and it becomes an even bigger problem for him when the heroine, Jenny Tolliver, finds out. Of course, I can’t tell you what the secret is, but I hope you’ll pick up the book and find out for yourself. That’s right – beneath that beautifully relaxing summery cover (I love it and can’t quit looking at it) lurks some very emotional stuff.

So who are some of your favorite tortured heroes? And why do you love them? From book, movie, or TV, what agonized hero makes you just ache for him?

And meanwhile, if you want to learn more about ONE RECKLESS SUMMER, just visit me online at www.ToniBlake.com, where you can read an excerpt and learn more about the book.

I love Cafe Press. There are so many goodies there. I’m on their mailing list, so when I received an email advertising Garfield T-shirts, I had to take a peek. One click led to another (as is often the case with me on the Internet) and I typed in a search for “writing.” Wow. Do you know how many T-shirts CP has with neat writing sayings on them? One in particular caught my eye: “My wife writes romance. I benefit. Big time.”

Okay, it’s cute. I chuckled when I read it. Then I thought about how people treat me when they find out I write erotic romance. Suddenly, I’ve become Dr. Ruth. I have to know everything about sex since I write about it. Surely I couldn’t write about something if I’ve never experienced it.

Yes, I can.

It’s called research. Imagination. Reading what interests me. Learning from some of my favorite authors. I haven’t called two male friends and taken them to bed so I could describe a menage correctly. (Although that might be fun…)

Most of the erotic romance authors I know are in a committed relationship with their own personal heroes. They’ve been married for years. A menage is in their minds, not their beds.

I’m amazed at how many people believe we writers actually DO all the stuff we write about. Thriller and mystery writers don’t find dead bodies buried in their backyard. Horror writers don’t slash people’s throats or stab them twenty-seven times. Paranormal writers don’t hang around with vampires and werewolves.

We lose ourselves in our stories the same way you do. We create characters we hope you’ll love as much as we do. Most of our adventures are created in front of our computers, not in the bedroom.

If I ever do find those two male friends to help with my research, I’ll let you know.

Lynn

1) Lavinia, congratulations on the release of your debut, A TALENT FOR SIN! What a delicious title … and cover!! Can you share something about the book with us? For instance, your heroine sounds uniquely brazen – no wilting miss here! The excerpt on your website is absolutely riveting! Did you always want to write a heroine with a little more experience … with, dare I say — a talent for sin? Sorry … couldn’t help myself!

My heroines have always tended to be strong. I wrote one who was naïve and it just didn’t work for me. Violet, my heroine, is the first one I’ve written who is unapologetically experienced. I loved creating a character who could be both powerful and seductive. She started as a minor character in an earlier (unpublished) book and just fascinated me. It took me a long time to decide what kind of man would be perfect for her. I finally decided that she needed a man who could accept her and love her no matter what – although it takes time for her to come to believe it.

2) Can you tell us something about your sale to Avon?

It really was a dream come true. It taught me that perseverance really does pay off. I’ve always loved Avon Romances and from the time I started seriously writing it was one of my goals. I just never thought it would be my first book.

How could any romance writer not want to be grouped with great authors at Avon?

3) If you were to recommend one romance novel to someone new to the genre, which book would it be?

I’ve never been able to only choose one. I had a cousin who asked for a recommendation a few years ago and I gave her Julia Quinn’s “The Duke and I,” Gaelen Foley’s “The Duke,” Mary Balogh’s “Simply Dangerous,” JR Ward’s “Dark Lover,” and Susan Elizabeth Phillip’s “Match Me if You Can.”

My list might be slightly different if I put it together now – but maybe not. These are all on my read and reread shelf.

The hardest part for me was choosing from among the historicals. I love so many that it was an impossible choice. I love reading and am a horrible critic. I like almost everything.

4) What’s the one piece of advice you would give to aspiring writers?

Keep at it. While there are a few amazingly talented writers who sell their first books, most of us work at it for years and think about giving up many times.

My other piece of advice would be – FINISH THE BOOK. Until you’ve finished a book don’t worry about perfecting it. I’ve known a bunch of writers who have perfect first chapters and can’t seem to get further. The best way to be a writer is to just do it.

5) And just for fun, what’s your favorite drink of all time (alcoholic or non)? And how much of it do you consume while writing your delicious stories?

I love citrus – lemon, grapefruit, and lime. I can be happy with a big cold glass of lemonade or delirious with a good mojito. I just like something that gives me a good pucker.

When I am writing I tend to stick to coffee and water. I get sleepy very quickly if I try anything harder. I love the image of sitting down with a good glass of wine and writing my heart out, but in truth my head would end up on the keyboard – and key imprints take hours to fade from your cheeks.