Sara Edmonds | You Might Call Them Quirks But I Call Them Reading Rituals

I have always had a reading ritual- a couple actually. And I prefer to think of them as rituals and not quirks, although some would debate me on that.

When I am in the "reading mode" so to speak, I gather everything together- I get a pillow, light blanket and gather some snacks so that I don't have to get up for a break. I then open the dog door so I don’t have to get up, get in my favorite chair and turn on some background noise (yes I am one of those people who can read with the tv on). I then settle down for a good few hours of uninterrupted reading time. And it goes without saying, the better the book the more I resent interruptions. Excuses are abound during a good reading session- dishes can wait until tomorrow and I don't need to do laundry. Then there is my favorite thing to say to all who interrupt me-"you can get it yourself." If only my lotto train could come in, I could even blow off actual work to read. I know I have a good book, when I deeply resent real life getting in they way of finishing a chapter. Even after I have procrastinated a day or two, I feel no guilt after, and that is the ultimate sign of a great book. Sometime the ritual varies slightly- I might stay in bed instead of sitting in my favorite chair, or I may only get in an hour or two of reading time if work gets in the way. But I always have the ritual, and I always look forward to it.

To read more about Sara's quirks...no rituals and to comment for a chance to win our weekend prize please click here.

Sarah Langan | Learning The "Rules" Of Adult Fiction

Some years ago, when my first novel THE KEEPER came out, I received a piece of hate mail from a reader, telling me that I’d gone too far, was evil, and she hoped I never had children. I deleted that e-mail, though in retrospect, perhaps I should have offered to sign and mail her another copy, since she clearly enjoyed the first so much.

My number one fan might be dismayed to learn that four months ago, my daughter Clementine Jane was born. I adore her more than thoughts can express, or I’m even able to admit even to myself. If I admitted it, I’d never leave her side.

THE KEEPER, by far the darkest book I’ve written, confronts incest in a frank and disturbing way, but I took no joy in writing the short scene my angry reader reacted to, nor does that scene glorify the act, or sexualize children. Quite the contrary. And yet, I made an enemy. Given the book’s reception by the Book-of-the-Month club, a lot of enemies.

Want more? read the rest...

Sarah Langan | Learning The "Rules" Of Adult Fiction

Some years ago, when my first novel THE KEEPER came out, I received a piece of hate mail from a reader, telling me that I’d gone too far, was evil, and she hoped I never had children. I deleted that e-mail, though in retrospect, perhaps I should have offered to sign and mail her another copy, since she clearly enjoyed the first so much.

My number one fan might be dismayed to learn that four months ago, my daughter Clementine Jane was born. I adore her more than thoughts can express, or I’m even able to admit even to myself. If I admitted it, I’d never leave her side.

THE KEEPER, by far the darkest book I’ve written, confronts incest in a frank and disturbing way, but I took no joy in writing the short scene my angry reader reacted to, nor does that scene glorify the act, or sexualize children. Quite the contrary. And yet, I made an enemy. Given the book’s reception by the Book-of-the-Month club, a lot of enemies.

Want more? read the rest...

FRESH PICK -- BREAKING THE BANK by Yona Zeldis McDonough

September 2009

On Sale: September 8, 2009
Featuring: Mia Saul
368 pages
ISBN: 1439102538
EAN: 9781439102534
Paperback
$15.00

Women's Fiction Contemporary

Buy at Amazon.com

Breaking the Bank
by Yona Zeldis McDonough

Single mother Mia Saul discovers that an ATM machine gives her free money; what she does with that money could change many lives--including her own.

MONEY ISN'T EVERYTHING
Mia Saul is down on her luck. Dumped by her husband, jettisoned from her job, and estranged from her adored older brother, she and her young daughter, Eden, have had to make a downscale move to a crummy apartment, where their neighbors include a tough young drug dealer and a widower who lets his dogs use the hallways as their own personal litter box. Juggling a series of temporary jobs, wrangling with her ex-husband over child support, and trying to keep pace with Eden's increasingly erratic behavior have left Mia weary and worn out.

EXCEPT WHEN IT IS
So when a seemingly functional ATM starts handing Mia thousands and thousands of dollars -- and not deducting the money from her account, because it sure isn't in there -- she isn't about to give it back. Her newfound cash stash opens up a world of opportunity, and a whole lot of trouble. Worried friends, family, and in-laws start questioning her judgment about everything, and the cops really, really want to know where all that cash is coming from. And then there's Patrick, a man Mia most definitely would never have met if things hadn't spun out of control. Mia is beginning to think that maybe somebody, somewhere, is trying to teach her a lesson about what matters in life, and what doesn't....

Who said having all the money in the world would bring you happiness?

Excerpt

Mia Saul was late -- again. She raced down the stairs of the subway station, an overstuffed canvas bag of produce hauled from the greenmarket thumping uncomfortably against her hip. Just as she reached the platform, which, despite the pleasant coolness of the September day, still held the wretched August heat, not one but two trains -- the N express and the R local -- pulled out simultaneously. Mia watched the retreating red lights and wanted to cry. This was the third time in a week she would be late picking up her daughter, Eden, from afterschool, the third time she would have to contend with the teacher, who would no doubt charge her the fee no matter how profuse her apology, the third time she would have to face her sullen child, standing outside the double doors of the gym and dragging the toe of her new forty-dollar Converse high-tops Read More...

Previous Picks

KAREN WHITE-OWENS | ART IMITATING REAL LIFE

I’ve been a published author for approximately seven years. Since I started to write, I enjoy writing about subjects that intrigued, puzzled, or upset me.Circles of Love was a book that explored a painful topic. For years I pondered the idea of having no clue to where you came from. The heroine in Circles of Love went in search of her mother after realizing she couldn’t marry the hero until she knew who she was. That story earned me a 4-1/2 Gold review from Romantic Times Book Club.


While negotiating my latest contract my editor suggested that I write connected books. I didn’t want to write about another large or extended family so I opted for stories connected by a large company. Living in the Detroit area, my ideas swirled around the automobile companies since Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler Corporations are all located in metro Detroit.


I didn’t want to use any of these companies so I created my own. French-owned and operated Gautier’s International Motors was born. I had no idea that the auto industry would stall, fail, or file for bankruptcy protection to stay in business and start new. Chrysler would offer the hand of partnership to Fiat and my little story would follow some of the events that marked the news in the Detroit area. Again, art imitated real life.


To read more about art imitating life please click here.

EVA GORDON | WHY I WRITE WEREWOLVES

My blog is about why my fantasy and paranormal novels center on wolves as main characters, or spirit guides. In my debut fantasy novel, Mystic Stone of the Tenth Realm, my hero is a Scottish werewolf, an alpha of his own pack( to be re-released soon). My current series is an epic lycan series, The Wolf Maiden Chronicles. Book 1, Werewolf Sanctuary released May 2009 followed by Beast Warrior (August 2009), which takes place during the Viking era. White Wolf of Avalon: Werewolf Knight (Fall 2009) will be forthcoming. My totem guide is the raven but my heart guide is the wolf. I also do presentations on wolf and werewolf lore. I’m not alone in my love of the wolf. Numerous authors are following the call of the wild.

Why is the wolf a common archetype in many myths and stories, even today? Nothing sends a chill down your spine more that hearing a wolf’s howl in the night. While at a wolf sanctuary, I spent the night in a trailer on the grounds and was privileged to hear night after night of thirty wolves in their nightly serenade. No sound is more awesome.

To find out more about the legendary wolf and to leave a comment for a chance to win The Girl’s Guide to Werewolves All you need to know about the original untamed Bad Boys By Garb Karg click here.

CLAIRE DELACROIX | TEN THINGS YOU CAN DO TO IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF MAKING YOUR FIRST SALE

I know a lot of aspiring writers (and I’ll likely meet a lot more, during the writer-in-residence program at the Toronto Public Library this fall. And every July, after aspiring romance writers attend RWA’s National convention, many of them come home determined to sell their first book by the next annual conference.

Selling a book by a specific date sounds like a good goal, but think about it. We say that authors make sales, but who is really is charge of that part of the process? Publishers buy books - specifically editors working for publishers - while authors write books. So, it’s not really up to you when your book is sold. This makes selling a poor goal, as the biggest part of it isn’t in the realm of your influence.

That said, there are a lot of awfully good goals that can put on the right path to making that sale, and - good news! - they are all within your powers

To read the list of ten things to do please click here.

Michelle Moran | Why Cleopatra's Daughter...

It all began with a dive. Not the kind of dive you take into a swimming pool, but the kind where you squeeze yourself into a wetsuit and wonder just how tasty your rump must appear to passing sharks now that it looks like an elephant seal. My husband and I had taken a trip to Egypt, and at the suggestion of a friend, we decided to go to Alexandria to see the remains of Cleopatra’s underwater city. Let it be known that I had never gone scuba diving before, but after four days with an instructor (and countless questions like, "Will there be sharks? How about jellyfish? If there is an earthquake, what happens underwater?") we were ready for the real thing.

To read more about Michelle's adventure in Egypt click here.

SANDI SHILHANEK | SEPTEMBER...READ A NEW BOOK MONTH

A discussion in one of my yahoo groups brought up special holidays in September. I’m sure if we all took a moment and stopped we could think of the more "traditional" holidays that September holds, but I wanted to think of something different. That sent me to Google and what I found was that September is Read A New Book Month.

To read more about September being read a book month, and to leave a comment for a chance to win our weekend only contest please click here.