Weekend with Friends

This past weekend I went on retreat with about 20 other writers.  Pantster and I drove up with the Fabulous Lynn Raye Harris to a wonderful bed and breakfast where we joined our chapter mates from Heart of Dixie.   It was mostly a weekend of  relaxation,  yet we got some work accomplished.

The cooler air of fall combined with the creative energy swirling around us seemed to bring out ideas as varied and wonderful as the autumn foliage.

 We saw some fantastic fall scenes and that got me in the mood to share some with you all. I thought these were gorgeous!

Where are some of your favorite places to see the colors of Fall?

Writing With a Partner

Pantster and I are often asked questions about how we write together so I thought that might be an interesting topic for us to talk about today.

On our website we talk about our very different approaches to writing and life. "They  had no idea their writing styles would be so different but, upon reflection, they could have looked at their travel styles for a clue. Jean (Pantster) once got off a plane in London with eight dollars, an ATM card, no reservations of any kind, and vague idea that she wanted to go to the Victoria and Albert museum. When Stephanie (Plotter) travels, she arrives with a detailed concrete plan written in a notebook that she carries in a coordinating tote bag that matches her calendar and her shoes"

So true.. I like to know that the details are mapped out and confirmed, in writing, while  Jean likes to travel, well...by the seat of her pants. She likes the freedom to go where and when the whim strikes her, but I can't enjoy a trip like that for worrying about not having a place to lay my head. Maybe being a Christmas baby and hearing about how Mary and Joseph had to sleep in a stable created this need in me.  I KNOW I don't want to ever have to sleep in a stable or share a room with donkeys, sheep and cows!

Back to our partnership. This is how it works: one of  us will usually have a kernel of an idea, a character,  or even just a line of dialogue. Then we get together and toss around ideas for how it might become a story.  Sometimes they even start as a lark but then we decide that we like some element or another and the idea takes on a life of its own.

After we have the story idea we talk about major characters.  I like to call this part of our process, "Who is the bad guy?"  Sometimes our stories have actual bad guys.  Our fantasy stories, The Elven Brides of Lochmoor, have actual villeins. Well, one of them has a bad guy and one of them has a bad gal.  (I do love it when the bad guy turns out to be a bad girl!) Other times the "bad guy" in the story is the internal conflict tht comes between the hero and heroine.  Our contemporary Gone South series is this way.

 Jean thinks of this stage of the process as, "What would Tyden eat for breakfast?" because at this point she is really working to know the characters inside and out. 

After we have  the major characters and what they eat for breakfast sorted out, then we talk about the conflict.  We call this the "hurt them bad" part of the process. Our friend, the fabulous Lynn Raye Harris, taught us a lot about this because we just never wanted to hurt our people badly enough. We have finally resigned ourselves hurting them because it makes a more interesting story--so we just pile the misery  on.

The last part of the planning involves making diagram of scene ideas and some climax points .  When we physically start to write the story, Jean sits down to the computer and implements our plan.  She writes great scenes that get us from point A to point B, then sends them to me to read.  I read each and every word, usually twice.  We often take sentences apart word by word if they don't flow and feel right and word choice is very important .  We once had a two day debate over the use of the word "ass."  She won.

Our partnership works in a truly collaborative fashion.  We send work back and forth until we both feel that it is the best it can possibly be.  There are many projects in life that allow us to work with other people.  

What are some of the best partnerships you have ever been a part of?

E-Readers Anyone?

I recently had a lovely day with Pantster and our friend, the Fabulous Lynn Raye Harris, joined us for lunch. In the course of our conversations, they repeatedly referred to books they had read on their electronic readers. Then they moved on to compare features on their different electronic gadgets.

As most anyone who talks with me for at least ten minutes knows, I am a Luddite. I don't fear technology. I just usually don't like it and it doesn't like me. In fact, it hates me. That's right; technology hates me. All of my technological gadgets stop working and/or malfunction at a very alarming rate, especially at school. My smart board and computers act up about twice as often as the machines of the other teachers on my hall. This school year alone, my room's telephone has had to have a technician visit it twice. Once it was so bad that after the regular technician worked on it for about an hour, he called in his supervisor who ended up telling him to just order a new phone. So believe me when I say that the problem between technology and me is severe!

Then there is my love of books. As I have mentioned before, I love the way books smell and feel in my hand. Love books, hate technology, so you can just imagine the strength of my desire to not have an e-reader. But then I heard my friends talking about all the different things they could read on them and how quickly they could just click on a link then wham! There was a new book right in their hands. The town where I live doesn't even have a book store, so you can probably see what a powerful attraction getting the book I want instantly would be. They also mentioned how they can get electronic copies of books that aren't available in print. I hate to miss out on anything so that made me stop and consider.

I am bringing it to you to help me decide.

• Do you have an e-reader? If so, what is your favorite thing about owning it?
• Do you wish you had one? Why?
• If you have one how did you decide between the different types, especially Nook vs. Kindle?

Secret Baby with a Twist

Fantastic Cover!

Strangers in the Desert is the title of the latest bestseller by the Fabulous Lynn Raye Harris. As many, many people know, my least favorite plot for a romance book is the "secret baby." There may be those of you who also know that I am a BIG fan of a sheikh book. I read a Barbara Cartland sheikh book early on in my romance reading days, and quite honestly never recovered from it. There's just something exciting about that rugged man on horseback carrying the heroine deep into the desert to fulfill her wildest desires. But I digress.

My love of a sheikh battled with my dislike of a secret baby, but when I read the review of this new book I knew that I had to read it as soon as possible. It did not disappoint! Sheikh Adan is everything I want in a hero--arrogant, rugged, and oh so sexy. I also really liked that he admitted to being very confused emotionally at times and that he loved his son so much. 

The Fabulous
Lynn Raye Harris

Isabella, our heroine, had followed all the rules and been a good girl, but what that got her was heartache. In fact, she was so heart broken that she seems to have blocked some pretty important things from her memory.



I won't go into all the details so that your reading of this fantastic book won't be spoiled, but I will tell you that it is very, very deserving of the 4.5 stars and Top Pick status from Romantic Times. The book strikes just the right note of hot steamy desert nights filled with sexy encounters, while balancing the emotional struggles the couple is going through as they come to terms with a
difficult reality.
\
One VERY lucky commenter will win a copy of Strangers in the Desert! I will anounce the winner tomorrow on the blog. Good luck!



Have you read Strangers in the Desert?
If so what was your favorite part?
If not, do you have a favorite sheihk story?

So Many Books, So Little Time

I don't know about everyone else, but it seems that I have tons of really great looking books to read right now. I purchased several last week then more this week and have even more on my list to purchase soon. It often seems as if I can't find anything that I am in the mood to read. Oh, I read all the time but often it feels unsatisfactory--as if some spark of excitement is missing in me about the books.

Those days appear to be over! I thought I would share some of the books that I am excited about with you. Over my Christmas break I consumed books at a rate that really felt more like a binge, but one I didn't want to end.

I discovered Lora Leigh's Breed Series. I have Bengal's Heart on my night stand. I read the story of the hero's twin brother during the holiday binge and I can't wait to see how this one works out.

I also picked up the first two books in Ms. Leigh's Tempting SEALS series. I bought the first two of the three, which was all my book store had. They look hot and sexy. Just what I need on a cold winter night to warm me up!

On my second trip I purchased The Husband Recipe by Linda Winstead Jones. I like to cook and I would like to have a husband so I decided this might give me the secret ingredient that I have been missing!

I saw The Cowboy's Secret Son by Trish Milburn and almost picked it up but didn't because, well, as everyone knows I hate a secret baby book so imagine my surprise when I got home and read the four star review in Romantic Times. It was all about how great it was I decided that I am going to get it when I go back to the book store. It sounds so interesting that I am going to try to move past my prejudice and give it a chance.

Isn't this beautiful!

On this second trip I tried to purchase a book that isn't out yet but that I am looking forward to with great anticipation, The Winter Palace by Eva Stachniak.

I think my new fascination with romance in Russia began when I read Behind the Palace Walls by the fabulous Lynn Raye Harris. It made me yearn for hot Russian men to warm up the long winter nights.
I am really looking forward to reading all of these new books. I have been thinking about doing a book review at least one Thursday a month and have decided that this is a great time to start that. I am currently reading The Phoenix by Rhonda Nelson and will review it next Thursday. I am really excited about starting this and hope you will enjoy hearing more about some of the books that I am reading.

It is also my hope that you will share books that you are enjoying with us here under the tulip tree!
What book or books are you excited about reading now?

Lynn Raye Harris' Jambalaya

Gang, I am really sorry!  I posted this recipe and didn't include the second page.  Many thanks to Jean for catching it.  I have corrected the problem. 

Here is a recipe from the fabulous Lynn Raye Harris. 

In my latest book, The Man With the Money, Cara Taylor is from New Orleans, so I could definitely see her making jambalaya for her hero!


I’ve made jambalaya the hard way (peeling tomatoes) and the easy way (using canned tomatoes). I like the easy way better. Basically, jambalaya is a mix of rice, tomatoes, seasonings, and whatever meat you have handy. I’ve made it with chicken, ham, sausage, and even shrimp. This is the basic version with sausage, but you could toss in another meat if you want variety!

Easy Jambalaya

1/4 cup olive oil (this is probably not exact, as I eyeball it)

1 large chopped onion

2 to 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

1 cup chopped celery (optional)

1 28 oz can chopped tomatoes with juice

(1 can spicy Rotel tomatoes are optional)

1 lb Andouille sausage, hot (can substitute smoked sausage)

2 cups long grain rice

2 to 3 cans beef broth

1/2 cup chopped green onions

Chopped parsley (to taste)

Cajun seasoning (Zatarains, Slap ya Mama, etc)

Red pepper flakes

Saute onion, garlic, and celery on medium-high in olive oil until translucent. (Best to use a Dutch oven to cook in because the rice will expand. Unless you have a huge skillet.) Add chopped sausage, cook for a few minutes to heat through. Add 2 cups rice. Stir frequently. You only want to let the rice brown just a tiny bit. Add tomatoes with juice.

(If you’ve chosen to use the Rotel, add those too.) If you’ve used hot Cajun sausage, no need for seasoning or pepper flakes.


If you’ve used smoked sausage, you’ll want to season to taste. Start slowly, because you can add more as you add the beef broth. Add enough beef broth to cover everything. Turn heat down to simmer, place lid on pot and let rice steam. You’ll have to check from time to time to see if you need more broth (don’t let the rice burn!). Stir and add broth and seasonings as necessary. Once the rice is tender and the broth cooked down, turn off the heat and add the chopped green onions and parsley. Stir. Serve with crusty French bread and wine or beer!

You’ll notice I don’t use salt. You can, but I don’t think you’ll need it when using canned tomatoes. They already have enough sodium to lift the blood pressure. *g*

And that’s it! Very easy, really. I hope you enjoy!

Lynn Raye Harris is a USA Today bestselling author who writes glamorous, sexy romance for Harlequin Presents. You can learn more about Lynn and her books at http://www.lynnrayeharris.com/. You can also follow Lynn on Twitter @LynnRayeHarris or visit her author page on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/AuthorLynnRayeHarris

The Man with the Money

We are so excited to have the fabulous Lynn Raye Harris blogging with us today and sharing her recipe tomorow!  We have scheduled this blog to work with the release of her newest book not realizing at the time that Lynn would be out of the country in London when the blog occured.  (Lucky her!) Lynn plans to make an appearance at some point today, if possible.

Please, join us in welcoming Lynn Raye Harris visit with us under the tulip tree:

I’ve written twelve books for Harlequin since I sold in 2008, but this book marks my first time being asked to participate in an editor-driven continuity. Basically, what happens is that the editors brainstorm a set of stories that are connected in some way and then ask the authors to write them. The Notorious Wolfes (called Bad Blood in the UK) are a family of eight siblings – seven brothers and one sister. They had a crazy father. Seriously, the dude was awful. Check out this gorgeous video trailer that Harlequin made to promote the series.

I don’t know about you, but that makes me want to rush right out and read them all! Scandal, secrets, bad boys. Yum!

My brother, Jack Wolfe, is a loner. He’s also a risk-taker, and he usually gets what he wants. He likes high-stakes card games, though the rush he gets from them is only temporary.

Until he meets Cara Taylor, the croupier who deals him his latest winning hand. Cara has issues of her own. She’s trying to take care of her family back home in New Orleans, and her boss wants her to throw the game she’s dealing.

Things don’t quite go as expected, of course, and Jack and Cara suddenly find themselves on the run across France. I had fun writing this story. It was a challenge to write to someone else’s predetermined plot, but I still had a lot of freedom within the framework. I’m proud of the story that resulted! I loved Jack, and I thought Cara was a worthy heroine for him. I hope you’ll agree!

Here’s the back cover copy:

Jack…Red-Hot. Renegade. Restless.

Notorious gambler Jack no longer gets a buzz from the risks he takes at the card table. In fact it bores him. Until one night he wins more than he ever bargained for…

His prize is stunning Cara Taylor – she might be down on her luck but she certainly doesn’t need rescuing by a card-shark like Jack! Now she’s stuck with him she doesn’t know whether to love him or loathe him.

One lucky commenter today will get a signed copy of The Man With the Money!

Life is Constantly Changing

Wow! Lots of stuff has been happening in my life lately. My neck surgery is healing nicely. I'll have that 3 week appointment next week and hope to get the a-okay for getting out and about. I've had some bad days but more recently, the good have outweighed the bad. My neck is regaining range of motion and the scar in the front of my neck is beginning to fade. I'm told you'll never know it is there at some point and I'm thankful for that helpful tip.

Our beloved Mr. Billington hasn't been as lucky. We had to put him down last Friday. He died in my arms, cuddling with me until the very end. We brought him home and buried him near our beloved labs, Bonnie Lass and Raven, and beside our other cat, Ashes, in the backyard. Miss Daae has been forelorn without her buddy, who really can portray the Phantom now. Mom's Siamese, KaaMakelani, feels more at ease slumbering about the downstairs. We, except for Kaa, will always feel B's presence and will miss him so very much.

The first time I tried to drive my car this week, it wouldn't start. Two weeks of sitting idle? Nope, the fuel pump had kicked the bucket. We were looking at a horrendous bill until we found out our previous fuel pump was still under warranty. Hallelujah! Good things happen when you least expect them and oftentimes need them the most. Learned something else too. I'm not ready to go back to work yet. I was worn out after getting dressed and ready for work only to go out and have to jump off the car, which didn't work, to my dismay. So I've decided that I'll wait until next week to give work another try. (The doctor did say 3 weeks, instead of 2. Gotta learn to stop rushing things!)

I've been using this time for introspection and finishing up my contest entry for the Mills & Boon New Voices 2011 Contest. And, I successfully entered my submission last night. This has been a new adventure for me, that far off horizon that eluded me for so long, is finally at my door. I'm talking about writing, not historicals, but a contemporary, something I thought could never be done. Guess what? Hey Mikey, she likes it! She likes it a lot! ;)

So if you have a mind to check it out, my entry is Lost Treasure, Captive Princess and you can find it here: Mills & Boon New Voices 2011. I'd love for you to stop by and leave a comment.

This contest comes once a year and this year includes all genres of romance at Mills & Boon. One of our dearest friends, Lynn Raye Harris, won the Mills & Boon Presents Contest a few years ago and she's written 11 fabulous books and counting so far. So this proves to be a wonderful experience. If I don't final, I hope to take away a new perspective on writing in the contemporary genre that will encourage and sustain me further down the road.

Life is constantly changing and we're to learn and adapt. I'm healing, Mr. Billington isn't suffering anymore, my car has been rejuvenated with a new fuel tank and a newer warranty, and I'm on an adventure, sailing uncharted waters. But I'll maneuver this contest with a compass as my guide and learn as much as I can. (Pirate!)

Like the willow, bend with the wind.

When is the last time you experienced a drastic change or took a fearless leap?

The Unexpected

In the last couple of weeks, many folks have blogged  about the RWA national conference in New York,  but it's my turn.  There were several things that happened during the week that were unexpected,  yet turned out to be good surprises.  Pretty much anyone who has known me for ten minutes knows how I hate a surprise so I realize what a big shock it must that I have coupled  good and surprise in the same sentence

Pantster and I roomed with the always fun Katherine Bone.  The first surprise was that she got us some really cool "roomie" presents.  She often gets us a little something to celebrate conference, but this year she out did herself, with  matching flashlights!  You might not think that is a great gift but if you had ever roomed with me, you'd know just how precious that can be.  Before I can rest easy in a hotel, I need for everyone in the room  to have a pair of closed-toed, hard-soled shoes beside the bed with a flash light in one of them.  Why? It's obvious.  In the event of an emergency, like a fire, I need to know that the people in my room can make a quick and orderly evacuation, using the route I have preselected for us during my recon of the facility. I scope out the recommended evacuation route and alternate ones in case there is a crowd or an obstacle that must be avoided.  The closed-toe, hard-sole shoes are for protection against broken things, sparks or other bad things on the floor. We cannot be slowed down by burning or cut feet.  Of course, the flash light is so that we can see to find each other if it is dark or smoky.  Getting a good gift from Kathy wasn't a surprise, but that she played to my special quirk was an unexpected joy!  (On a different note, if you don't make a plan to get out of a hotel in the case of an emergency, I strongly encourage you to do so the next time you have a trip.  As a friend of mine often points out, the people who are most likely to survive any crisis are the people who have a planned ahead of time.)

A room like ours!

A second great surprise was how fantastic the Marriott Marquis staff was.  Everyone was so helpful and did everything that they could to make our stay the best possible--from Terrell at the security desk, who made my stay in New York City less stressful, to the lovely people who provided coffee and water for the conference attendees in the mornings.  You always hear how rude people are in other parts of the country, especially New York, but it was a very nice unexpected treat to find that to be totally untrue.

The absolute best unexpected event happened when Pantster and I pitched to Deborah Smith of Belle Books. If you have never been to the pitch room at the RWA national conference, you have truly missed a spectacle of epic proportions.  I pray every year that God will bless the volunteers who work there because it has got to be the one of the craziest volunteer slots at the conference.  These poor volunteers have to get a new group of about twenty-five people lined up and into the pitch room every ten minutes for hour after hour.  Then in the pitch room,  the noise and nervous energy are just over the top!  So there Pantster and I were pitching to another Southern writer who is also an editor. We made a little small talk as we handed her our cards.  Then she asked us to tell her about our book so we launched into our pitch.  She nodded and laughed out loud.  We took that as good signs.  Then she asked some questions and said our story sounded great. Here is where I expected to get the fairly standard request for a partial submission, but, instead, the wonderfully unexpected happened . . . . She asked us if this was our first book  and right out of my mouth popped, "We have some elves living under our beds." Now to give credit where credit is due, this is how our friend, the fabulous Lynn Raye Harris, refers to her early medieval romances that will never see the light of day but it made Ms. Smith laugh. Then she asked us to tell her about them.  Of course, by this point our ten short minutes were almost up but she gave us her card and said the most wonderful thing someone pitching can here.  "That all sounds great. Send me everything you've got."   Needless to say, Pantster and I were over the moon with excitement!

Has there ever been a time in your life twhen you thought you knew what would happen, but it turned out much better than you anticipated?

Upcoming Guests

I am sure  many of you are checking your calendars thinking, "Did I miss some days? I thought today was Monday, Pantster's day on the blog."  I am equally sure that everyone expected to find a witty, sassy blog that probably included a list of rules for behavior for situation that adults should already know but seem to have forgotten--or worse--choose to ignore.

Instead, you find a blog by me. Believe me, it can only go up for you from here.  In an effort to make sure you aren't too disappointed, I decided to share some exciting news with you.  Since the guest blog by The Guy went so well while we were at the RWA national conference, we have decided to have more guest blogs.  We have contacted many of our author friends, including some very excited first book authors, and we have over ten guest bloggers scheduled for the upcoming months.  Most of them are also going to share a recipe that relates to her book so that will make Recipe Fridays more fun too.

These guest spots will coincide with new book releases so that we can all get the inside scoop on the hottest books before they hit the shelves. (Well, unless your store is Books-A-Million, but that is Pantster's story to tell.)  In the next few months we are going to have visits from Kimberly Lang, Katharine Ashe, Debby Giusti, Rhonda Nelson, Debbie Kaufman, Melanie Dickerson. After Christmas, we'll hear from Kira Sinclair, Missy Tippens, and  Andrea Laurence.  Exciting times indeed!

We look forward to visiting with these authors and think you will enjoy getting to know them and chatting about their upcoming releases.

Is there an author you most anxiously await new releases from?  Has it changed over the years?