Tag: Writing

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Monday Mayhem – Retreat to advance

What I’ve been working on: I don’t know what to say. My alter ego has taken over my life. She gets all the bragging rights.

What’s running around in the back of my mind: Shel and Josh from Containment are starting to whisper to me again (thank goodness). I’m trying to be cool and play it coy, but if they stick around I may work on them as my NaNoWriMo project.

What I’ve accomplished: The good news is I signed a contract to publish Jump Into Love with Harlequin-E! The other news (not necessarily bad) is that Maggie stole it from Margaret and made the darn thing all sexy and stuff. What can I say? Split personalities can be vicious.

What new goal I’m chasing: I’m trying to build momentum on my daily word counts in preparation for NaNoWriMo.

What I saw: Inspiration

lake

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Monday Mayhem – Reform Movement

I know. I know. I’ve been a pretty bad blogger lately, but I promise to reform. The problem is, most the time I don’t know what to write about. My life isn’t all that exciting. But I like talking to you each week. It’s true. I’ve missed you. And I’m going to do five things to make it up to you.

That’s right. Five things. Not bad, huh?

Each week that I don’t have something special to share, I promise to share at least five things with you. They could be five lines from one of my stories or five whats. What’s a what, you ask? They’re pretty simple:

What I’ve been working on:

What’s running around in the back of my mind:

What I’ve accomplished this week

What I accomplished this week:

What new goal I’ve set:

What I saw:

Since I’ve been a bad blogger, this week I will give you both.

Here are five lines from Long Distance Love:

“I’m being transferred to Louisville,” she said in a rush. Her statement landed like a punch to the gut. “Yeah. I just…I don’t see how….”

Ellie’s small, sad smile tugged at him, spurring him into action. “We’ll make it work.”

Not enough for you? Buy the book!

Long Distance Love – releasing THIS WEEK from Turquoise Morning Press:

LongDistanceLove-MKEthridge-LG

Love may be a many splendored thing, but it’s rarely convenient.

A Christmas Eve snowstorm leaves newly-single Ellie Nichols trapped in an airport terminal with only hunky FBI Agent Jack Rudolph for company.

Lucky Ellie.

For Jack, the passing of a long winter’s night turns into a New Year filled with possibility. State lines and hundreds of miles separate them, but the spark that flares each time they meet cannot be denied.

Can two ambitious, career-driven people find a way to make a long distance relationship work when matters of the heart bring them up-close and personal?

And here are my 5 whats:

What I’ve been working on: I’m working on love story for people who saw movies from The Breakfast Club era when they were first released. It’s a racy one, so you might be more apt to find updates on it at Maggie Wells’ website. 😉

What’s running around in the back of my mind: WWII – I have a WWII-era story flirting around the edges. Nothing concrete yet, just a bunch of plot bunnies hopping around in my head.

What I’ve accomplished: Did I tell you I’ve sold a story to Fictionvale Magazine? It’s the short story that sparked this WWII jones, and it will appear in the online magazine’s premier issue in November!

What new goal I’m chasing: At the moment I’m just trying to keep writing. The demands of the day job and the distractions at home have wreaked havoc on my productivity this year. I’ve recently tried to settle into a pattern where I’m writing a minimum of 500-1000 words per day and not beating myself up if I can’t do anything more. So far, it seems to be working. I hope to gradually build on that over the next couple of months so I’ll be back in fighting form for NaNoWriMo. So yeah…my new goal is balance.

What I saw: True love

boys

 

Don’t forget to click the envelope on the top right sidebar or go here to join my mailing list. Oh! And if you like my Facebook page, you can enter a contest to win a $10 gift card!

Your turn! What are your whats for the week?

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Monday Mayhem – Chihuahua Mama!

My pal Amy Jarecki is here to answer a few quirky questions and share a bit of her new release, Chihuahua Momma with us! Here I go with those hard-hitting Barbara Walters questions!

Describe yourself in three words

Intense loving hermit.

Any nicknames? Tell me about them!

Plenty. My favorite is the moniker my dad gave me: L.B.T.W.A.J.G. we even had a song about it, and I’d stand on the bench seat beside him in the truck (loooong before baby seats) and sing it at the top of my lungs. What does it stand for? Little Bitty Teeny Weeny Amy Janers Gal…what else?

As authors we tend to have to research many bizarre and unusual topics. What’s the strangest thing you’ve Googled research-wise?

Boy, that’s a tough one, especially since I Google several times a day. I also write historical romance and I come up with some weird stuff. Today I was looking for a cure for ague and had to sift through a ton of modern remedies before I found what I wanted. Sheesh, who calls malaria ague these days?

Share your favourite word or phrase.

Shit—at least that’s what all the kids in the neighborhood think.

Do you believe in love at first sight? 

Definitely.

Tell me about the inspiration for Chihuahua Momma:

Well, I show Chihuahuas and one day in the ring, I saw hunk of a man with whom I fell in love at first sight…and thought…maybe I should write a book about a top notch handler who gets it bad for an ex-football star.

CHIMOMMA-MD

Blurb:

In the frenetic world of canine pageants like Westminster, where dog hair flies and personalities diverge, Rebecca Lee remains in a cocoon of loneliness. Widowed, with two teenaged kids and a business to run, Rebecca would rather mow through five-hundred poodle cuts than think about dating. But when former quarterback Matt Johnson shows up to buy a Chihuahua, his irresistible grin rocks her world—until Matt’s ex decides she wants him back and Rebecca’s daughter decides she’s against her mom dating. Rebecca now has a choice—crawl back into her realm of dogs or fight for the powerful love that fills her soul.

Excerpt:

Chapter One

Like all males, this one was a sucker for a back massage and he leaned into her skilled hands with a blissful moan. He arched his back when she found that “spot” and Rebecca chuckled at the dog’s leg-shaking response. She glanced in the mirror over the stainless steel doggie bath. The steam always made Rebecca’s red hair frizz and it tickled her cheeks as she worked suds into the Powder Puff Chinese Crested.

With her teenaged kids at school, Rebecca sang along to the tune of “Uptown Girl” booming from the light-rock station. She sounded pretty good and blasted out the words she knew, substituting “doggie paws” where her memory failed.

Rebecca took her hand off the Crested to swipe the encroaching frizz out of her eyes. Of course the dog took advantage of the freedom and shook, splattering her with water and suds. “Darn you little rascal.” She twitched as doggie bath water dribbled down her face. Glancing at the mirror, she dabbed her cheeks with her shirt sleeve. The suds in her hair would have to wait.

As she reached for the warm water spray hose, a muffled doorbell rang. Her eyes shot to a plastic black-and-white Chihuahua clock, its tail wagging to the tick of each half-second. Damn, ten minutes early and he’s at the wrong door. Can’t people read the sign? She fastened the grooming loop on the Crested and folded up the side panel of the bath to ensure the dog’s safety.

Dashing from her studio, she opened the door of her Southern New Jersey home. With a sharp jolt, her breath caught as a friendly grin and sky-blue eyes gazed down at her. “Hi, I’m Matt Johnson.”

Rebecca stood motionless. Her mouth hung open, her mind unable to focus.

“Ma’am?”

Website: www.amyjarecki.com

Social Media links:

Twitter: @amyjarecki

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amyjarecki

Blog: http://amyjarecki.blogspot.com

I can’t handle any more than that, or else I’d never get any work done.

Thanks for having me on your site, Margaret! I love your not-so-mainstream questions!

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Happy birthday!

I’m helping my author pal Leah Braemel celebrate her birthday today!

Stop by for your chance to meet some awesome authors and win some even awesomier prizes!

(click the banner)

Birthday-Bash-3_200x3001

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Monday Mayhem – The 4%

Been doing a lot of writerly soul searching lately. I haven’t discovered much other than the fact that my thoughts are about as shallow as a mud puddle in July. You see, a couple of years ago I made a plan for my writing career…. If you know anything at all about life, you know that it likes to scoff at plans. This time it was no different. Oh, I did all the things a person is supposed to do: targeted goals, set deadlines, mapped my expectations. I rolled through some major changes to my day job and navigated the shifting sands of the home life as best I could. In the end, I made 96% of those goals (actual percentage for the stats nerds like me) a reality.

Not bad, huh?

Yeah…That 4% is driving me crazy.

You see, that tiny percentage represents a major portion of what I thought I would accomplish. But try as I might, it’s not happening. I’ve been beating myself up over that 4% for the past 6 months. You see, that 4% represents Containment.

I’ve circled, poked, and prodded this novel, but I can’t make it take shape. The story is all in my head, but my usual panster ways weren’t working, so I turned to plotting device after plotting device in hopes of finding the key to unlock the story. I’ve tried The Hero(in)es Journey method. I tried to Snowflake and Beat Sheet the darn thing but let’s face it, my stories aren’t that hip. I’ve even attempted to go all Dom/sub on it, but it just laughed when I pulled out the flogger. I’ve even written a synopsis for it. If you know me at all, you know I despise writing synopses. But I did this one voluntarily. Desperation does funny things to people.

A few people have asked when it can be expected. The answer is simply, I don’t know. All I know is that for the sake of my sanity, I’m going to have to set it aside for a while. I’ve hardly written anything this year, and I’m afraid that if I don’t find a horse that’ll run, I’ll forget how to ride.

Those who know me personally know it kills me to say this. I hate not being able to follow through. There’s nothing worse than feeling like I’ve let people down. But I’m not abandoning it. I still intend to write Shel and Josh’s story. I just can’t seem to do it right now.

Bear with me, okay?

So, how about a little good news?

Long Distance Love is done and coming soon! The week of August 26th soon. Yay! I just did the final galley read-through and I have to say, I still love Jack and Ellie. I hope you will too!

That’s all I have for now. I’ll be back next week. Oh! And keep your fingers crossed for Commitment – the GDRWA Booksellers Best Award recipients will be announced later this week. 🙂

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O Canada!

O Canada! La la la la la la…. O Canada!

La la la la la la. La la la la la, la la la la la, la la la la la la la….

We stand on guard for thee!

canadian-flag

So yeah. It’s Canada Day, and as an HonoUrary Canuck, I thought it would be cool to have my Canadian friend and anthology buddy, Evelyn Jules, stop by to entertain you.

You got your party toque on? Excellent! Say good day, eh!

****

Hello there, everyone! Happy Canada Day to all my fellow Canucks out there, and Happy Monday to the rest of you! J

I’m a quirky girl. Some might even call me a bit of a clown. I love to juggle, I’ve been on a flying trapeze, and at the very top of my ‘things Evelyn must own’ list is a unicycle. Most of the time I’m loud and proud, but sometimes I’m awfully quiet too. Like a mime. It’s possible I took a four week introduction to physical theatre (aka: miming) course.

Here’s the funny thing. Margaret is kind of (or a lot) afraid of mimes and clowns. She’s also a very close friend of mine. Like an older sister, you might say. And since we’re like sisters we enjoy tormenting each other…which brings me to my reason for being here today. One day I heard that Turquoise Morning Press was putting together a collection of wedding-themed stories. I decided to write a love story about a mime and a clown. Then I laughed at myself because I think I’m pretty funny and stuff. But then I stopped laughing because OMG, this was a brilliant idea! So I found a scrap piece of paper and started jotting down all the bits of plot and dialogue that were floating and bouncing and cartwheeling in my head. And then I pitched my idea, including stick figure art, to the collection editor, and instead of shipping me off to the loony bin, she actually LIKED the idea. She liked it so much she actually gave me a spot in the collection!

Now, back to Margaret. Part of the reason why I wrote the story was to drive Margaret crazy. But you know what? Something amazing happened in the end. She liked it too! That’s when I knew I had to share it with the world. It’s not a dirty story. Shocking, I know. It’s actually a beautiful love story of two circus freaks…Oh, hell, just read the blurb.

All Action, No Talk

Alice Moore is a clown . . . in love with a mime.

Her parents have never approved of her circus-oriented lifestyle and in effort to deter her from wasting her life clowning around, they set her up with family friend, Grant Humphrey. A practical man. A businessman. And the last man on earth she wants to marry, but here she is, marching down the aisle toward him.

Alex Holiday is a mime . . . in love with a clown.

He’s silently followed Alice from venue to venue on the circus circuit, working alongside her, worshiping her in secret. He’s never been able to tell her how he feels . . . until now. When he catches wind of the upcoming wedding, he vows to put a stop to it. But will his objection be too late?
I have cover art too!

WeddingCollection_MD

 

The best part about being in this collection is that I get to share it with Margaret. Her story, Always the Groomsman, kicks things off to a hilarious start! I hope you all get yourselves a copy! And remember, clowns and mimes deserve love too.

Now, tell me, what’s the strangest romantic pairing you’ve ever written or read about it?

The Wedding Day Collection is available at these fine retailers:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/The-Wedding-Day-Collection-ebook/dp/B00DF2IJOE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1371389617&sr=8-1&keywords=the+wedding+day+collection+margaret

Turquoise Morning Press Bookstore: http://www.turquoisemorningpressbookstore.com/products/the-wedding-day-collection-anthology

All Romance Ebooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-theweddingdaycollection-1222660-166.html

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-wedding-day-collection-margaret-ethridge/1115674093?ean=2940016477282

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Monday Mayhem – From this day forward….

Hi! I’m back from my excursion to the annual Reader & Author Get Together in Ohio. It was a great time, as always. The team of volunteers Lori Foster and Duffy Brown have assembled is top notch, and the staff at the Marriott spoiled us as usual.

The best part of the RAGT weekend is the casual atmosphere. I met so many awesome readers and fellow authors this weekend and also had a chance to catch up with some friends. I thought I’d share a few pics before I got down to today’s post.

Look! It’s Evelyn Jules! Squeeeee!

Evelyn

My fabulous editrix Lola del Sol!

lola

I photo bombed Julie Anne Lindsey during the signing

JAL

And pillaged my favorite Viking princess, Renee Vincent

renee

I also got to show off the beautiful cover art for this week’s TMP release: The Wedding Day Collection!

WeddingCollection_MD

Love, love, love it!

Want a taste?

“You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen, Maggie. I don’t care about the dress or if your hair isn’t perfect.” He smiled when she automatically reached up to tame her wild mane with her palms. The owner of a successful salon and day spa, beauty was no joking matter to Maggie. “You can’t tell me you don’t have make-up in your purse or the diaper bag. I’ve never once seen you leave the house with less than three shades of lipstick.”

“Not true,” she whispered. “I went into labor with only a Chapstick on me.”

“And you never looked more stunning.” The statement of fact came equipped with a charming smile. “You said you’d marry me, Maggie. I let you put me off and put me off—”

“Put you off? It’s been two weeks!”

Actually, it was three. Three weeks since another stick turned pink and his inner Ward Cleaver roared to life. He couldn’t help it. She was going to have his baby. Again. And damn it, this time he wanted to do things right. As right as he could make them at this point. Seemed the not-so-good Catholic boy in him joined forces with Ward to bring him to his knees. Literally.

That’s all I’m going to give you. I mean, it’s a short story. If you want to know what happens next, you’re going to have to buy the cow story.

Or catch a one of the copies my co-authors and I might be toss out there like a bouquets.

Last week, Louise won the drawing for an advanced read copy, and you can do the same!

All you have to do is comment below,share your favorite part of a wedding celebration, and I’ll draw another winner. Seriously, it can be nothing more than:

I’m in it for the cake!

See? Easier doing the Hokey Pokey!

Don’t be a Chicken dancer! All comment posted before 11:59 Wednesday, June 12th have a chance to win. Speak now or forever hold your peace….

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Monday Mayhem – Turnabout, fair play, and breakfast cereal

I do a lot of talking about me on this blog, but let’s face it, I’m not that interesting. This fact was hammered home over the weekend as I tried desperately to come up with topics for blog posts that weren’t complete snoozefests.

Then I realized something. I may be boring (wake, work, eat, write, sleep – lather, rinse, repeat), but I find YOU infinitely fascinating. Therefore, I thought it would be fun to turn things around.

I want to interview you.

Comment below with your answers and I will draw the name of one lucky commenter on Wednesday, June 5th and send them an Advanced Read Copy of The Wedding Day Collection.

WeddingCollection_MD

This anthology includes Always a Groomsman – the story of Tom Sullivan and Maggie McCann’s (Commitment) wedding day!

You game? Let’s do this thing!

What’s the title of the last book you read?

What is the worst job you can imagine having?

What is your favorite breakfast cereal?

Name one thing you own that you wish you didn’t.

If you were famous, what would you be famous for?

 

Happy Monday, my darlings!