Category: Blog

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Monday Mayhem – Back again

Sorry I missed you last week. I was attacked by a norovirus Sunday afternoon, and unable to come to the computer.

This unexpected turn of events caused great upheaval in my routines. Not only did I miss posting here, but I missed a day in my 100 day challenge. Quite a bummer, considering the 100 days are up next week. Still, I plan to get 99 out of 100, and my overall word count shouldn’t be worse for wear.

Still, lots of things happening this week. If you have not downloaded copies of GOING DEEP and FLIP THIS LOVE for only $0.99, do it now! The sale ends this week. Share this with your friends!

Beach Reads sale

Amazon Apple B&N Google Kobo

Later this week, everyone’s favorite redhead will be back, and he’s FREE!

SEDUCING STEVE free June 29 – July 2 exclusively on Amazon!

160 pages of red-headed hottie

All of this as I sprint to the finish line on A BOLT FROM THE BLUE so I can turn it in to my editor at the end of the week.

Oh, and as of Thursday, I’ll have been married to this guy for 15 years:

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So, all in all, a busy week leading up to Independence Day and the release (finally!) of A WILL AND A WAY!

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What have you been up to?

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Monday Mayhem – Tell Me Something Good

There are days when I consciously make the decision to wear blinders. This doesn’t mean I’m oblivious to what’s happening around me or uncaring. It simply means I choose not to focus on things I cannot control. Just one of my particular coping mechanisms.

Like everyone with a feeling heart, I am horrified by the events that took place in Orlando this weekend.

As a woman, I’m angry about the flaws in our judicial system and the misogyny we allow to permeate our society.

I’m fearful for our country’s political future, and frankly, giving a good number of my fellow Americans the side eye.

And, as ever, I’m worried about my husband / children / siblings / nieces / nephews / greats / grands / dog / and even the baby birds in my hanging baskets (which, is amazing in itself if you know how I feel about birds).

In other words, this:

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All of the above are reasons why I choose fiction. The very essence of why I choose to read and write romantic fiction. I need stories with happy endings. Otherwise, I’d be a quivering mass of fear and worry and hopelessness.

This weekend, I hid out in my imaginary world quite a bit. You know what happened there? This:

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So, I’m going to focus on this piece of positivity for the next week or two, then I will send it off into the loving embrace of my extraordinary editor.

How about you? Did anything good happen in your little corner of the world this weekend?

 

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Monday Mayhem – Catch up, but not ketchup

Because I don’t do condiments…

Hi, friends! It seems a while since we caught up. As Ferris says:

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It seems things have been on some kind of special effects warp speed around here. Life is flying by, but in that weird slo-mo sort of way. I’m on deadline again. The ink isn’t dry, so I can’t say too much, but I think you’ll find it Worth The Wait. (BTW – That was a crazy big hint if you’ve been following my series titles.)

I’m in head-down writing mode, but also trying to deal with some heads-up life stuff. Which means I’m a bit scattered. So before I forget – GOING DEEP and FLIP THIS LOVE are both an SALE for $0.99 each this month. Please, please, please tell your book loving friends.

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I’ll be signing copies of FLIP THIS LOVE at the Diamond State Romance Authors 10th Anniversary book signing on Saturday, June 18, 2016. We’ll be at the Hastings bookstore in Benton Arkansas, so if you are in the neighborhood, come and see me!

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You can read more about DSRA and see pictures of me and my pals in this Only In Arkansas article!

Remember, book #3 – LOVE & ROCKETS is coming in November so this is a great time to catch up. I’ll have some gorgeous cover art for L&R to share soon!

Oh, and book #2 in my *ahem* Worth the Wait Romance series, A WILL AND A WAY will release on July 5, 2016, so be sure to mark your calendar. Better yet, you can preorder a copy at your favorite retailer!

Amazon ~ Apple ~ B&N ~ Google ~ Kobo

A WILL AND A WAY

So yeah, busy-busy!

In the meantime, Fodder and I took Ferris’ advice and headed out of town for a night. We went to Hot Springs, and poked around a bit. My boyfriend even bought me presents:

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Does he know me well, or what? He should. At the end of this month, we’ll have been hitched 15 years.

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The pool a water behind us is one of the hot springs. It’s hot tub (or bathwater for me) warm to the touch and you can see the steam rising from it. It has been a rainy week off and on. The system finally cleared out yesterday evening, but it left us a parting gift.

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When we got home, we decided we ought to re-bond with our dog and our patio before going about the business of laundry, grocery shopping, and other unsavory tasks.

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I said life moves pretty fast, I never claimed we did.

So there you have it, friends. I think we are up to date. See you next week!

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Monday Mayhem – Memorial Edition

Today, we honor all those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our country. They should be honored every day.

If you’ve never had the chance to visit Arlington National Cemetery outside of Washington D.C., I urge you to do so. It’s an experience you’ll never forget.

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To these brave persons and to the people who love them still…Thank you.

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Monday Mayhem – How about a quickie?

That got your attention…

Just home from a fabulous weekend at the Chicago North RWA Spring Fling! Thanks so much to all the hardworking volunteers and speakers who gave their all to make it an awesome conference. I also want to thank all those who came out to the book signing. I had a blast sharing FLIP THIS LOVE with the world!

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Proud to report that I kept up with my daily word count (barely). I also left my room even though I wanted to hide from the stranger danger. As a reward, I got to meet some fabulous people I’ve only chatted with in a virtual world.

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I’ll have more to report once I’m caught up with the laundry, but here are some teasers for stuff coming in June: A sale! Another sale! And a new Yankee Candle newsletter giveaway!

In the meantime, check out the bling that was waiting for me when I got home. 🙂

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Monday Mayhem – a quick hit

A quick reminder, an update, then let’s play a game. Sound good?

Business first:

I’m signing FLIP THIS LOVE on Saturday at the Hyatt Regency Schaumburg from 3-5pm. Please come and see me if you live in the area!

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Making excellent progress on A BOLT FROM THE BLUE! Wrote my tuchas off all weekend, and I’m closing in on the halfway mark. It’s a mess, as most first drafts are, but I’m having a good time writing it.

This Friday, I’ll be on the Contemporary Romance Cafe interviewing my bestie, Julie Doner, on her writing plans and ambitions. Be sure to check it out!

Okay! Enough of that nonsense. Let’s do some of this nonsense:

I want you to pick ten random songs that you never get tired of hearing. Ready? Go!

I’m going with:

  1. In-between Days ~ The Cure
  2. The Blower’s Daughter ~ Damien Rice
  3. Cornerstone ~ Arctic Monkeys
  4. Better Be Home Soon ~ Crowded House
  5. Last Chance on the Stairway ~ Duran Duran
  6. Weekend In New England ~ Barry Manilow
  7. Blue Bayou ~ Roy Orbison
  8. Somebody to Love ~ Queen
  9. The Ghost In You ~ Psychedelic Furs
  10. Stardust ~ Nat King Cole
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Monday Mayhem – More more more!

Another whirlwind week on deck! Wanna play a game of where’s Margaret?

    1. In case you missed it, I was at Fiction University last week talking about writing mojo and the tricks we writers play on ourselves to make things happen.
    2. I’m at Just Contemporary Romance today and tomorrow talking about the differences between a house and a home.
    3. I have a GoodReads giveaway starting this week! Be sure to enter and to tell all of your friends!
    4. Less than 2 weeks until I terrorize the Northwest Suburbs! I’ll be signing copies of FLIP THIS LOVE at the Chicago North RWA Spring Fling Conference book signing Saturday, May 21, 2016 from 3-5pm at the Hyatt Regency Schaumburg. Mark your calendars!

 

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Okay, now that we have that mess out of the way… Hi! How are you? I’m happy to report that things are finally looking up around here. I can’t give any specifics about good things in progress, but let me say I’ll be cranking out plenty of reading material for 2017 and beyond!

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Ahem. Thank you, Buzz.

I’ve started a new novel this week. It’s called A BOLT FROM THE BLUE and I’m having a lot of fun writing it. In this book, I’m reimagining the first original character I’d ever developed. Our heroine is a free-spirited former debutante named Hope, and she’s about to give an ultra-grounded electrician named Mick one hell of a jolt.

Oh, and in case you missed it, FLIP THIS LOVE is available and readers are really falling for Harley Cade, rough edges and all! Have you read FLIP THIS LOVE? Please, please, please consider leaving a review at Amazon, GoodRead, iBooks, B&N, or wherever you buy books. Reviews not only give an author feedback, but they provide an excellent marketing tool (See below).

“Before I say anything else, I need to confess that I’m hopelessly in love with Harley Cade. There. I said it.” 

“Harley, Harley, Harley how to describe him well he’s sweet, but at the same time he could be a smarta**”

“Furthermore, the story itself features my favorite kind of hero—a self-made entrepreneur who works with his hands and who treats his mother like a queen.”

“I liked that Harley never gave up on Laney. It’s a true testament to how much she matters to him.”

And my friend Karen made this pretty graphic for me

Nothing draws a magnate like a steel magnolia...

If you blog or use social media, please feel free to grab it (right click and save photo as…) and use it to help share the love!

xoxo

Mags

 

 

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Monday Mayhem – Mahhhhhvelous!

You know what’s awesome? Truly awesome? Having fabulous friends who do incredible things like throw you a surprise release day part on Facebook and Twitter. Did you see these?

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They even gave me a hashtag!!! I feel so cool! Thank you, Karen, Julie, and all of the fabulous friends who posted and re-posted. I am touched and humbled, and so very grateful to have such supportive friends.

So, yeah….FLIP is out! I loved writing Harley and Laney’s story. In my head, they were very much like Sam and Diane on Cheers. Bicker, bicker, bicker, kiss, kiss, kiss! I hope you all are enjoying it as well.

Guess what? I’m still celebrating this release into May! Tomorrow, I’ll be at Janice Hardy’s Fiction University with a little on How I Do It (the writing – get your minds out of the gutter!), and next week at Just Contemporary Romance. I’m hoping to party down on the Kensington Tumblr account and will keep you all posted if that comes about.

And the words keep rolling along. I finished the first draft on RANSOMED HEART last week. We’re taking a little break from each other before I tackle revisions. It’s kind of a hot mess, but I think it’s a good hot mess. I’ve just finished the galley read-through on LOVE & ROCKETS and it should be set to go for November! Oh! But don’t forget about A WILL AND A WAY in July. LOL

In the meantime, I’m sitting on some news and cannot wait for it to hatch so I can share it with you. Just know this…I’m going to be a very busy girl for quite a while!

xoxo
Mags

P.S. Want a signed copy of FLIP THIS LOVE for you or for a friend? Comment below and tell me your favorite TV pairing and I’ll pick a winner later this week.

 

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It’s my book birthday!!!!!

At last!!!

Flip This Love is now available!

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Nothing draws a magnate like a steel magnolia…

Harley Cade is back in town—and the former bad boy is downright irresistible now that he’s donned a hard hat and set to work restoring the South’s finest homes to their former grandeur. While wealth may have gained Harley entry into high society, it’s going to take a lot more than a fat bank account to win the lovely Laney Tarrington.

Laney isn’t open to giving the self-made magnate a second chance—no matter how much she needs him. With her family fortune gone, Laney finally has to stand on her own two feet. The last person she’d ever lean on is Harley, the man who left her behind with nothing more than memories of the passion they once shared….

With the attraction still burning hot between them, Harley isn’t above seduction—or secretly buying Laney’s bankrupted family’s estate. After all, he no longer has to prove himself to anyone, least of all the daughter of Mobile, Alabama’s most prestigious family. But will pride keep Harley from gaining the biggest prize of all—a place in Laney’s heart?

Buy now and please share this with all your romance loving friends!

Kensington ~ Amazon ~ Apple ~ B&N ~ Google ~ Kobo