Author of Sexy Romantic Suspense

Writers Gone Wild

2009-07-08T10:58:00.003-04:00

Blogging @ Writers Gone Wild today. Topic: Happily Ever After vs. Happy For Now. Stop by and say hi :)

Release Date!

2009-07-07T06:37:00.005-04:00

I just got a release date of 8/7/09 from my editor for Adrianna's Cowboy. It's going to be my first release under my new pseudonym! I don't think I ever officially announced it here, but I decided to separate my erotic romance from the rest of my writing. All future erotic romance will be available under the name Savannah Stuart.

Currently I'm working on plotting out my next manuscript. It's going to be a single title and more complex than anything I've done so far. I'm in the 'naming' stage and I'll be honest, it's my least favorite part of developing a new story. I already knew what I wanted to name the hero and heroine but all those supporting characters need first and last names too and since this is a bigger cast than I've ever done, it's been a little time consuming.

Ack! The man finally left this morning and now I can get some work done. Normally he's fairly quiet in the mornings but today I was ready to hurt him! Okay, now I have no more excuses not to write. Today's plan: finish with names and write the first scene in new story.

Today is my Friday

2009-07-02T10:34:00.002-04:00

Yay! My tyrannical boss (I'm totally kidding btw) is closing the office tomorrow so it's an extra long weekend for me :) Finished my latest novella early this morning before heading to work. I actually wrote about 1K more than I expected bringing my daily total to 3K and all before lunch. I'm pretty impressed with myself. *Sigh* If only I could do that every day. Of course now I have to go back and edit the hell out of it and write my synopsis, but it's a good feeling nonetheless.

It's been raining pretty steadily all week but I looked at the forecast and Cocoa is supposed to have a measly two hours of sunny/cloudiness sans rain tomorrow morning so we might try to sneak over to the coast. Haven't decided how lazy I feel yet. On Saturday we'll probably watch fireworks downtown (over a lake) from a friend's high rise and thanks to Kristen, I think I'm going to bring cookies with a little holiday flair!

Have a fun, safe, Fourth of July everyone!

Things A Girl Should Have

2009-07-01T11:24:00.003-04:00

Blogging at Writers Gone Wild today. Topic: Things a Girl Should Have in her house at all times.

Desert Island Keepers

2009-06-29T01:00:00.002-04:00

It's been a while, but it's my turn over at Desert Island Keepers. For the next few days I'll be hanging out over there so stop by if you get a chance!

The Weekend is Here!

2009-06-26T11:18:00.005-04:00

Another Friday is here and this sure has been a long week! As some of you know, my mom was admitted to the hospital Wednesday but she was thankfully released the next morning after a slew of tests. Last year she spent about 13 hours in the ER before they found her a room and it was just as long this time. I have a lot of respect for people that work in the hospital. I don't want to go into the details but it looks like everything is going to be okay. For that, I am very grateful as I have the best mom in the world. She's so kind and giving and I hope I tell her that enough.

I'm having a lot of fun writing my new novella. *Knock on wood* but I haven't been facing any of my normal struggles and I even managed to plot the entire thing out before writing it. Dara, if you're reading this, I hope you're impressed ;) If I'm really lucky, I'll have enough free time over the weekend and get some serious writing done.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

RWA and Epublishing

2009-06-24T07:46:00.003-04:00

I'm over at Writers Gone Wild today discussing the recent brouhaha with RWA and epublishing. My real reason for posting however is because I wanted to let everyone know why I love being epublished. Stop by and check it out if you get a chance.

Manic Monday

2009-06-22T10:46:00.005-04:00

Hope everyone had a good Father's Day (if you celebrated). I definitely did. Spent it with my dad of course. Since it was so hot we spent it out on his boat. There's a sand bar on the chain of lakes he lives on so we parked with the rest of the folks cooling off and just relaxed for a few hours. Even though I put on a ton of sunscreen somehow my shoulders still turned pink :( My soon-to-be niece (sister's fiance is a father) spent it with us and she's so cute. She's only three but she's so smart and funny. I can't believe half the stuff that comes out of her mouth. The girl remembers everything!

Thankfully my dog is finally feeling better so we don't have to take her to the vet. My mom thinks she had separation anxiety from when we went on vacation and she's probably right. We usually take her with us when we go somewhere. If we don't, we only go out of town for a few days and even then we leave her with family but this time it didn't work out and I think my little angel thought we'd left her :( She's normally affectionate but the past week she's been doubly so. She follows both of us everywhere. She hates the bathroom and usually avoids it at all costs (b/c she doesn't like baths) but now if I'm doing my makeup she'll plop next to me and wait for me to finish.

Over the weekend I reworked the erotic novella I was working on and now it's a shifter erotic novella. I've wanted to try my hand at a shifter story for a while but I didn't think I was ready. I'd already built the 'world', decided the rules on aging, mating, shifting, family life, anything I could think of, but I think I was too afraid to actually write the story. I got about 10K into my current story and the hero kept telling me he wasn't human and I needed to rewrite him so finally I just listened. All his actions/reactions were so primal I decided to tap into his more animalistic side and write him the way he wanted. I shouldn't be surprised, but now the story is much smoother. And now his two brothers are demanding a story too.

Friday & Other Stuff

2009-06-19T16:06:00.003-04:00

Whew! Friday is here at last! My dog has been sick all week. Still not sure what's wrong with her but we've put her on a bland rice and chicken diet for a couple days. If she's not better by Monday it's off to the vet. :(

Finished my revisions and sent them off to my agent (feels weird writing that let alone saying it aloud) earlier this week. Since we've never worked together before I really hope my revisions are what she was looking for. *crossing fingers*

On ESPAN's blog today, RWA's president Diane Pershing had a response to Deidre Knight's post from Wednesday regarding RWA and the Digital Age so if you're so inclined, check it out. Her response was disheartening, but completely expected. I don't even read her letters in RWR anymore because they're so laced with her own personal prejudices (which sadly, I don't think she realizes she even has). I'm much more inclined to listen to someone like Deidre Knight, a well known agent with a pulse on the publishing industry.

It's been a long week and my brain is fried so that's all I've got for today! Have a great weekend :)

Villain or Hero?

2009-06-17T07:05:00.002-04:00

I'm over at Writers Gone Wild chatting about villains and heroes today. Stop by and offer your opinion!

Deidre Knight on The Digital Age & RWA

2009-06-15T10:37:00.003-04:00

Deidre Knight, author of Butterfly Tattoo and founder of The Knight Agency is talking about The Digital Age and RWA over at ESPAN's blog today. Her post is incredibly thought provoking and informative. Stop by and read it if you get a chance.

I'm Back (and other news)

2009-06-12T08:08:00.004-04:00

Got back from AZ last night. As soon as we stepped off the plane the smothering humidity hit us like a wave. AZ was warm, but the no humidity thing is something I could get used to. Still, it's good to be home :) This wasn't a typical sight seeing vacation, it was more or less a chance for hubby and me to visit w/ his best friend, who's a border patrol agent. We didn't do a lot other than visit and it was wonderful. I also got a lot of research done on what the Border Patrol does.

In other news, I signed with Jill Marsal of the Marsal Lyon Literary Agency. She called me on a Sunday, on vacation no less, so I was completely taken off guard. I'm surprised she still wanted to sign me by the way I rambled on. Seriously, my brain was telling me to breathe and try to sound like a coherent person but it just wasn't happening. I'm insanely excited, but I don't think it's set in yet. Maybe it's all a little surreal. I was working on a short romantic erotica that will have to take a back seat until I finish her requested revisions.

Before I do anything though, I have to go grocery shopping and there's a pile of laundry to catch up on! It doesn't even feel like a Friday to me, but I hope everyone has a great weekend! In the next few days I promise to visit every one's blogs and catch up :)

Hooked on Romance

2009-06-04T08:47:00.002-04:00

I'm a guest blogger at Hooked on Romance today. The fabulous Jax Cassidy interviewed me so stop by if you get a chance! I'm giving away a copy of Dangerous Deception too!

Writers Gone Wild

2009-06-03T10:44:00.003-04:00

I'm over at Writers Gone Wild today chatting about vacations. Come leave me some love :)

Adventures in Laundry

2009-05-29T12:44:00.006-04:00

Last night I knocked over an almost completely full diffuser of jasmine. The smell wasn't very strong until the glass holder shattered, spilling the contents all over my bathroom floor. So, I clean it up w/ an old towel and since I already had a load of laundry started, I went ahead and threw it in with them. Not a good idea. The oil must have mixed in with EVERYTHING because I could smell it before everything was out of the dryer. Luckily most of the laundry was towels, but I had a few shirts I work out in thrown in with them. When I was working out this morning the smell kept getting stronger and stronger the harder I worked (aka, the more I sweated). I thought I could get away with it, but I'm going to have to rewash everything from last night. More fun added to my weekend ;)

On to more important stuff. I'm almost finished with my current WIP. I know I said it a couple days ago but now I've only got a couple thousand words left! I want to finish by tonight so this weekend and next week I can get some editing in before our much needed vacation!

In case you can't tell, I changed my layout again. I get antsy every few months and need a new look (I think I get that from my mom). What do you think?

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Men in Uniform

2009-05-27T05:00:00.002-04:00

Blogging at Writers Gone Wild today. Topic: Men in Uniform. Come say hi!

It's sunny again

2009-05-26T10:48:00.004-04:00

Got in a quick jog with the dog this morning so no guilty stares when I left for work today *g* Had a great (relaxing) Memorial Weekend. Got a lot of writing done, got some sun time, and went to a barbecue where we stuffed ourselves with hot dogs, hamburgers, and chips. Can't remember the last time I actually ate a hot dog. If I had to guess I'd say it was in college during one of the football tailgating parties. Going on vacation in a couple weeks so I'll be detoxing and eating healthy until then. (Blech) My dad went to visit his best friend in Miami this weekend and he brought back a bunch of mangoes so I'll be digging into them this week.

In writing news, still waiting on some stuff and I'm almost finished with my current WIP! Jumped that midway hump last week and now I can see the finish line :)

How was every body's long weekend?

Happy Friday

2009-05-22T07:30:00.003-04:00

It's still fairly gloomy out, but I think it might stay clear enough to get in a morning jog. I know my dog certainly hopes so. Since there's been a torrential downpour practically every day the past week I've been relegated to using my treadmill. My dog lays next to it and stares at me, trying to guilt me into going outside. When I took her out to take care of business yesterday, she kept tugging me toward the street, thinking I might not notice the rain. She doesn't mind getting soaked in the rain, but she hates getting a bath. Don't understand that one. She's good at the guilt thing too. When we got her she was the runt of the litter and now, at 5 years old, she's a 37 pound husky and she'll never get any bigger. She's an adult but she looks like a puppy. And believe me, she capitalizes on her cuteness factor.

Hope everyone has a fabulous three day weekend!

I can't embed the video b/c it's been disabled, but if you get a chance, check out this video of huskies and polar bears playing. It's amazing :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCJ5_Oc2T3g

Where is the sun?

2009-05-19T18:38:00.005-04:00

My muse has been hiding all day along with the sun! Sunny Florida is dark and dreary today. If we didn't need the rain so bad, I might be annoyed! Btw, the picture to the left is the reason I love my husband so much ;)

Don't forget, Jill Sorenson is a guest blogger tomorrow at Writers Gone Wild. She's giving away a copy of Crash Into Me so be sure to stop by and say hi!

On Thursday, Kristen Painter, co-founder of Romance Divas will also be guest blogging at WGW! She's chatting about the newly revitalized ESPAN chapter of RWA! I'm giving away an autographed copy of Lucinda Betts' The Supplicant to one lucky commenter!

Writing and Life

2009-05-18T10:46:00.005-04:00

Got some nice writing in this weekend. Not as much as I'd hoped, but I'm officially over the halfway point of my current WIP :) Trying to get the rest finished by the first week of June. Also got some incredibly nice (and unexpected) fan mail about Dangerous Deception. It just came out Friday so I wasn't expecting it.

Currently playing the waiting game. I've got a full manuscript out with a few agents. Definitely not complaining b/c I'm thrilled they requested fulls in the first place. *g* It just feels like time goes slower when waiting to hear news--good or bad. It's increased my writing productivity though so that's a plus.

My sister just got back from her trip to Hawaii (totally jealous!) so I'm super excited to see her! We work together and I'm used to seeing and talking to her every day. Last week sucked without her so I was actually looking forward to the weekend being over!

What did everyone else do this weekend? Something more exciting than sitting behind a computer and writing? :)

Contest Winner

2009-05-16T08:48:00.003-04:00

Congrats to Caffey who won a copy of Dangerous Deception!

Thankfully, the weekend is finally here! The man is out of the house for the next few hours so I'm taking advantage of the quiet and getting in some uninterrupted writing time. Cleaning can wait :)

Have a great weekend everyone!!

Release Day!

2009-05-15T08:47:00.004-04:00

Dangerous Deception, my newest hot romantic suspense releases from Ellora’s Cave today! Remember, you still have a chance to win a free download. Just visit Writers Gone Wild to see how!

Blurb
Two years ago, Sage Miller’s life changed irrevocably with one violent act. Longing for anonymity, she relocated to the coast of North Carolina. Just when her life is settling down, a sexy man from her past shows up and wants to pick up where their explosive relationship left off. And this time, he’s the one calling the shots.

Trent Takoda spent a week with the most intense woman he’d ever met—before she disappeared in the dead of night. Now that he’s found her again, he’s not letting go. When a vicious stalker with ties to her past tracks her down, all bets are off. She belongs to him and it’s about damn time she realized it.

Read Excerpt for more!

Writers Gone Wild

2009-05-13T00:02:00.002-04:00

I'm over at Writers Gone Wild today talking about promotion and other social networks. Come say hi! One lucky commenter will receive a free download of Dangerous Deception, my Friday release from Ellora's Cave!

Happy Friday!

2009-05-08T14:34:00.003-04:00

Got my hair cut and colored this week and tomorrow I'm getting a pedicure and getting my eyebrows waxed! Small things, but it's what keeps me going :) I got my weekends confused and I was soooo excited b/c I thought this weekend was Florida's music festival. Alas, it's not til next weekend. No worries though, I'm still going. Last year was amazing so I'm sure I'll have plenty to post after next Saturday. It's probably a good thing I got my weekends switched b/c Sunday is Mother's Day and there's no excuse in the world that my mom would accept for ditching out (and I wouldn't expect her to). I've got something special planned but since I know she reads my blog (waving at you, Mom) I'm not divulging what it is!

Have a great weekend everyone!

WGW - Pop Culture

2009-05-06T06:46:00.002-04:00

It's Wednesday again. I'm over at Writers Gone Wild talking about popular culture so come say hi :)