July #goals and RWA conference

I won't go into the fact that it's suddenly July. Nope, won't touch that distressing bit of calendar news!

Lots going on this month: a wedding (not mine lol) and the Romance Writers national conference on Atlanta. I've never been to Atlanta and would love to explore but I'm literally flying in Thursday night after work and leaving Sunday morning at the crack of dawn. Alas, no exploring for me. One day, Atlanta!

I'm also working on my contemporary ménage series, Havenbrook Ménage Series and in the beginning stages of plotting an Edwardian trilogy. Yes, I know I started one several months ago but I didn't like it. The plot felt great, the characters engaging, but every time I went to write it I dreaded doing so. In the end, it was best that I scrapped it.

I'm not sure if I want this to be m/f erotica or a ménage but I do want to write one. I love the time frame and have always wanted to write in that era! It's now or never!

And Christmas...was going to write a Christmas ménage. Maybe for next year.

Nominate your favorite Erotic Menage Romances!

The nominations will close at midnight January 31^st and on Feb 2-28, 2013, everyone will get to vote (poll).

Winners will be announced on March 1^st 2013.

Prizes to win for each category!!

Fill out the online form with your first and last name (twitter or facebook are acceptable alternative) and email (emails will be validated) If you are an author, please mention it with your pen name(s).

Rules:

Authors can nominate other fellow authors but not themselves.
Reviewers are not allowed to vote for themselves.
Readers can nominate only one time per category per person.
Mary’s Naughty Whispers will not vote in any categories. Nomination is in your hands!
Maximum 1 vote per category per person. Some books may fit into several categories. You may choose the 3 best categories maximum for the same book.
To participate you do not need to offer a nomination in all categories.
In order to avoid multiple votes per the same person or self nomination, a personal email & name are required. Emails will be validated. If you are not interested to receive prizes, mention it when you fill in your email and name. Twitter ID or Facebook are acceptable alternative i.o. your name.
If it happens that a category does not fit the book nominated, Mary’s Naughty Whispers will contact you in order to select another category. In order to avoid such mistake, please check the book categories on the publisher’s website

UPDATE [Jan 8]: In the event that a category exceeds 5 nominations, the five (5) nominations most submitted in the category will be eligible for the final voting award (Feb 2-28). In case of a tie, the first nominations submitted will be selected. So the most votes for the same author/book in the same category, the better chance this author/book will be the official nominees.

Happy New Year,series' goals, and thank you

Since I'm having a party at my house for New Year's Eve I figured I'd write this blog before then. Because I know I'll be in no shape for January 1, 2013 to wish anyone anything unless it's to wish for someone to take the puppy out tomorrow morning. (Any volunteers?)

A happy, healthy, warm, and loving New Year to everyone. Life is what you make it and I hope everyone has positive energy surrounding them this new year. Say it with me now: 2013 is going to be the best year ever! (Ugh, did I just sound like a cheerleader there?)

Thank you to everyone who have made blogging fun, not a chore, and who keep me always thinking about my next story. I enjoy the interaction with my readers and hope you have as well. Keep safe!

Writing wise, I have a lot planned for the upcoming year! A whole lot:

• I want to finish my Parisian Exposition series-this is a 6 book series, one for every month of the 1889 World's Fair. Book one (Seduction of my Proper Wife) is finished, and book 2 (Wicked Seduction) is so close I know I can finish it in a couple of uninterrupted days. If I can find those uninterrupted days!
• I have an Edwardian story I want to get back to, the tentatively-titled The Half-Bred Earl.
• A Wicked Demon Story series--I still have to finish editing book one: Cursed Love. Originally it was to be a Halloween story, but when the idea strikes on September 30 it's not very feasible to publish it on October 31. This trilogy is also a little different, my m/f couple battling ancient demons. I'll post the blurb next week.
• Book one of The Havenbrook Menage series is flowing beautifully. Forbidden Road is my twist on the small town series so popular. I like the small town romances, but they're often a little too sweet for me! More on this series to come
• Last but certainly never least, Regency romances. Let's face facts, it's the lack of the death of the Regency! I want to write another trilogy set during this time but haven't quite hit on what yet. I like the idea of the menages there, so much scandalous wickedness hidden in plain sight. We'll see how the year goes.

Also on my 2013 goal list:

• Take more time for myself
• Exercise every day. Even when I'm tired. Yes, even then!
• Spend several weekends this year not writing but out and about, meeting new people and experiencing new things.

What about you? What are your so-called New Year's Resolutions?

All about...questions, answers, and new stories!

What is the working title of your book?
The Half-Breed Earl: An Edwardian Ménage...as you can tell, it's only a working title!

Where did the idea come from for the book?
My main male character is a half-English and half-Haitian heir to an earldom. I wanted to do something a little different for this story and thought introducing a half Haitian hero would be interesting and fun. During the Edwardian era prejudices were still alive and well and I want to use that as a part of my story.

What genre does your book fall under?
Historical erotic romance. Specifically Edwardian Ménage Romance.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
Assuming they'd ever make an Edwardian ménage romance into a movie...
LL Cool J for Tristan Harton, Earl of Westhope
Kate Beckinsale for Lady Adelle Brockton
Piper Perabo for Miss Cassandra Saxon Collingmore

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book? (I admit, I did 2 sentences!)
The carefree Earl of Westhope must marry to ensure the line, but has decided to enjoy life instead; when he meets two intriguing young women he realizes he's met his match. But when events alter all their lives, things turn far more serious than even Westhope could have imagined.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
This one I plan to submit to an e-publisher.
 

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
The holidays came and interfered with my writing schedule. That and I'm really moving along with another WIP and feel the need to finish that one. I'm still working on Half-Breed Earl (I need a better title!) but hope to finish it by mid-January. I did have an idea on how to fix chapters 1 and 2 but need the time and quiet to do so!

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
An Edwardian Ménage Romance? Downton Abbey meets erotic romance. Any historical menage romance + any historical soap opera.


Who or What inspired you to write this book?
My utter love of Downton Abbey and my utter love of ménage romance. Combine the 2 and it's sure to be explosive! Or at least have mind-blowing sex and a dramatic plot.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

My plot outline includes as much drama from the Edwardian era as I could manage to put in. Plus it has a biracial hero in a time when that would have never happened. Mix in a sexy threesome, a revenge plot, a stalker, and hot monkey sex, and you have a delicious mix of costume drama and ménage sex.

I was supposed to tag at least 5 people to continued the hop but no one volunteered! Sooo...if you'd like to continue the Next Big Thing Blog Hop and post your answer to these questions, let me know!

Meditation, #Goals, and Seduction of my Proper Wife

To start off this week, today I'll be at The Menagerie Authors today talking about Seduction of my Proper Wife: A Victorian Menage at the Parisian Exposition. Stop on by and join the discussion!

December, the time of Christmas, end of year stuff, slight panic, and a time to meditate. Yes, I really did say meditate. Why? Because of all the months to start taking time for yourself, don't you think this is the month to do so? Face it, even if you don't celebrate Christmas it's the rush of all things ending. Not that January 1 feels all that different from December 31 but it's the mental attitude of it all.

So this month I want you to find a spot where no one will talk to you for at least 90 seconds in a row. (I can wait, I know 90 seconds is a lot during the day!) Sit straight, feel flat on the floor, hands on your thighs, close your eyes, and breathe.

It may not seem like much but that time for yourself, when you breathe in and hold it then breathe out, breathe in and out slowly. Each and every breath you filling your lungs, and that is really good for you. Meditation apparently keeps Goldie Hawn young (and face it, she looks fantastic!) Meditation keeps you focused and centered and if that minute and a half is all you take for yourself in a single day, at least you have that time and your body will thank you!

Now that you've relaxed for nearly two solid minutes, what do you plan to do with your month? Make new year's goals and resolutions? Shop? Wrap? Get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the season? Take another minute (30 seconds if you have to) and relax.

This month I plan to finish Wicked Seduction, the second in my Victorian Menage series, and work more on the Edwardian menage. You can read more about that one on Wednesday when I'll talk about it for the Next Big Thing Blog Hop!

Want to join in? Just email me and I'll send you the questions!

Thank you and #goals

First I'd like to thank all our Armed Service Vets. Technically, the actual day was yesterday with the cease fire happening at 11AM on November 11, 1918. However, it's being 'observed' today. No matter, my thanks remains the same:

Without you, the life and freedom I enjoy today wouldn't be possible. So I offer a very heartfelt and gracious thank you!


Now for my goals: Taking this week to flesh out my Edwardian story, it needs a little something more and I have to figure that out before I continue on. Set in 1910, the m/f/f story is heavy with Edwardian themes I loved in Downton Abbey, but still needs a little...sexual something. Before I get to the sex.

Instead, I worked more on the 2nd in my Victorian Parisian story, Wicked Seduction, my m/m/f story. And I'm quite pleased with that progress!

Gotta go where the story demands. Here's a little peak at chapter one from Wicked Seduction: A Victorian Menage at the Parisian Exposition:

Le Grand Hôtel de Paris

June 1889

Victoria Scott suppressed a shiver of accomplishment as she looked around the room. She suddenly felt like a legendary female adventuress; a woman who donned a pith helmet and sought out the unknown in farthest Africa. Of course, her unknown was a ballroom in Paris, but that was enough adventure for a girl of nineteen.

In the last week, she’d escaped her father’s household in England to their townhouse in Paris and hadn’t once looked back. She didn’t care what the servants thought or what her father said or did once he’d finally discovered her missing. If he even bothered to see what she did once his latest business venture was completed.

She was in Paris and free. To be sure, leaving for the Parisian Fair had been an audacious move, especially when she’d taken only her lady’s maid as whatever meager chaperone the poor girl provided.

Now, sipping champagne and looking around the private gathering in Le Grand Hôtel, Victoria smiled again. That wildness in her had never been tamed, much to her father’s regret. No one ever dared to try and control her.

She wandered to the windows and looked out at the Seine. Electrical lights illuminated the scene before her. Opening the French doors, Victoria looked out and towards the fair where even more lights shone. It looked as if the entire world had brightened.

Breathing deeply of the fragrant air, Victoria closed her eyes and laughed. Turning to survey the room, she spotted several friends enjoying themselves and raised a silent toast in their direction. And then she spotted Peter.