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Today's the Day!

It's finally here! Today is release day for THE BEST MAN'S PROPOSAL. And I've got a lot in store!

Aside from hanging on my own Facebook page, I've got a Thunderclap campaign running (feel free to throw your hat into that ring ;-). There's a Book Release tour through Book Partners in Crime, and I am doing an interview at Get Lost in a Story blog on Wednesday (with giveaways)!

Tonight, I will be at the online release party hosted by Book Nook Nuts. And there will be fun and more giveaways from 7 - 9 pm. So join the party!

Seriously - what are you waiting for. Hop over to one or all of these events and join the fun.

I hope to see you there.

Hurricane Prep is my Bitch!

So here comes Hurricane Irma! Living in the Sunshine State, we're used to tropical storms and hurricanes, but I have to say, Irma does seem to look like the mother of all storms!

I'm trying to get some work done today, but alas, my brain won't stop buzzing with tasks that need to be done in the next day or so. I've got all the usual suspects taken care of -- water, non-perishable food, cars filled with gas, generator ready, outside items inside, etc.

But having ridden out several big hurricanes a decade ago, and the resulting week-long power outage, I am a much smarter, savvier hurricane prepper. And chances are that we will lose power for a while.

Back then, we didn't have a generator, so we lost everything in the refrigerator. And after days of Florida heat and humidity, we ran out of clothes. Also, my house got dirty very fast due to people tracking in wet leaves and dirt. Without a vacuum cleaner, I was forced to sweep -- and sweep and sweep and sweep!

So this time I'm prepping smarter. Along with the usual safety checklist, I've added the 'Mom's OCD List' which includes: Doing all laundry in the house, vacuuming the entire house, and cooking food that either doesn't require heating, or that can be heated on the grill.

Aside from helping me to stay away from the constant doom-and-gloom weather reports, the tasks actually help me retain some sense of control in a situation that is mostly not in my control.

If you're in the storm's path, here's the non-OCD list: Stay safe!

The Countdown Begins

September is a crazy month for this author! Book releases are always busy times, but when you have two in one month -- look out.

First up is THE BEST MAN'S PROPOSAL, a fun, contemporary romance that takes up where THE SURROGATE HUSBAND left off.

Here's a little about the story:

Niki Hamilton had her hopes pinned on moving to Europe with her boyfriend. But then he dumped her. By text message. Just before her sister’s wedding. Left dateless in a flamingo-pink monstrosity of a bridesmaid dress, she decides to drown her sorrows in a glass of tall, dark, and handsome.

Firefighter Grant Powers has been burned by love, but when his best friend’s new sister-in-law falls into his arms—and stays there for one sexy night—he enjoys the experience a little too much. Then a rental snafu leaves Niki temporarily homeless. So, gentleman and masochist that he is, Grant offers his spare bedroom. Despite the smoldering sexual tension between them, starting anything would be playing with fire.

Now, they just have to survive living together for a few weeks…

Each book in the Hamilton Sisters series is a standalone story that can be enjoyed out of order.

Series Order:

Book #1 The Surrogate Husband

Book #2 The Best Man’s Proposal

To celebrate the release, I'll be doing several events (yes, there will be prizes). There'll be a Takeover at Book Nook Nuts on September 18. On September 20th, I'll be over at Get Lost in a Story for some more fun, excerpts and a giveaway.

Speaking of giveaways, my publisher is hosting one on Goodreads for this book! Enter to win today. 

The best part is that THE BEST MAN'S PROPOSAL is on sale for only $.99 for a limited time. But wait, there's more! I'll be blogging soon about my other September release, my next contribution to the Nocturne Falls Universe. Stay tuned for updates. 

Conference Goodness

So a couple of weeks ago I attended the Romance Writers of America national conference, which was conveniently held in a Disney hotel in my hometown of Orlando. The workshops were top-notch this year, featuring the likes of Damon Suede, Kristan Higgins, and my very own agent, Jill Marsal, just to name a few. I learned a lot, networked, and generally had a wild and crazy time. As a bonus, I got to hang with some awesome ladies.

For the first time ever, I shared a room with three other lovely romance writers. I was sure that was going to be a bit claustrophobic, but it was just fine. Amazingly, we're all still speaking! Actually, we're closer ever.

And did I mention the parties? I got to meet many of my fellow Entangled authors, some of the other Nocturne Falls Universe folks, and some of the hugely talented authors who are also represented by my agent's literary agency.

One of the highlights for me was meeting up with my good friend, Cynthia Eden, and going to a very cool bar with her on Disney's boardwalk -- AbracaBar.

Another fun part was taking photos for my friend and street team leader, Tammy, of Book Nook Nuts. She said she'd love photos of me with Laura Kaye and with Krystal Shannon.

The only down side was coming home with bronchitis after five days of frenetically keeping up with my schedule.

All in all though, the RWA conference was a good time, and well worth the splurge.

Renovate or Die

I've been putting off certain home maintenance projects for a while because I knew they'd become headaches. Well, I say a while, when what I really mean is more like a decade!

So last year we replaced the kitchen counters, finished replacing the windows, and had the last of the ugly wallpaper removed in the family room.

But as we thought about enhancing our yard by enclosing the pool, we wondered if we'd be better off to sell our current house, and find a new one that already had a screened pool. It wasn't like we had fun neighbors, since all our friends on the next street had moved out years before. The only thing was my husband's attachment to the backyard, which he'd made into an urban oasis.

 I assured him we'd find something he could turn into a new paradise. But after wading through the local real estate market, we realized that with all the improvements we'd already made, we'd be foolish to get into another home and have to redo so much of it. Plus, we met a great couple who'd recently moved in directly behind us. The wife is an artist—another creative soul. We became fast friends with them, and in weeks we were seeing them at least every other day, either going to the gym together, or to a social event, or just hanging out over drinks. In short, they tipped the scale the rest of the way toward staying put.

So - 2017 is the year of the backyard. In the next two months we'll have a crew here for a couple weeks to screen in the pool, replace the roof over the lanai with one that will eliminate the open-air oven we now use as a screened patio, and extend the deck.

Somehow, I will have to squeeze in writing my next Nocturne Falls Universe book, and a 4-day long writers conference at Disney World. Wish me luck.

What big plans do you have this summer? Whatever they are, I hope you keep cool.

General Gratitude

You may have read some of my Gratitude posts. I have a lot to be grateful for, believe me. Last night, watching the last episode of The Handmaid's Tale on Hulu, drove home to me how fortunate I am to live in the society that I do, at the time I do. Sure, it has its problems, particularly now, but those issues can't compare to having absolutely no freedoms.

As frightening as this dystopian story is, there are actually places where women, in particular, have no rights at all, even in this day and age.

The story made me contemplate all the freedoms I take for granted. It also got me thinking about things like, how easy would it be for a large government, like in the US, for example, to suspend the constitution, and declare martial law because of some perceived threat to our security.

That accomplished, would the majority sit still if the rights of certain minorities were then taken away.

Oh, wait a second. That happens all the time, and not only in third-world countries. Until very recently, LGBTQ people were denied many rights here in the USA. Not long ago, certain races didn't have the same rights and privileges as the majority in this country. So yeah, it totally could happen. Pretty scary.

All that aside, I highly recommend this show. It is some of the best TV I've ever seen. And it definitely gives lots of food for thought.