How To Be A Writer Panel Discussion

It's only the 12th January, and I already have some incredible dates in the diary!*

And this is one of the exciting things happening for me this year! The event is on Thursday 6th February 2020 at 7.30pm.

I'm going to be on a panel with three other wonderful authors discussing how to be a writer. We'll be covering our writing routines, dealing with publishers, getting agents etc.

It is a ticketed event, so, if you live in the Weston-super-Mare area and would like to come along, you need to purchase your ticket here.

If you want to find out more about the four of us, click here.

I'm really looking forward to this night, and it should be a lot of fun! Hope to see you there!

Teresa x 

*(I don't have time to date date - which is a good job, because I'm not even going there right now. That's another blog post!) 

How To Help An Author Friend

Not all authors are like J K Rowling (although her struggle was real in the beginning). They actually have a part-time or even a full-time job as they need a reliable monthly income. They hope one day, when they "make it" - like J K Rowling - they can give up the day job.

However, for most of us, it's a reality that we can't ever give up work and become a full-time writer, and having recently talked about this, a friend suggested I put a blog post together to help guild those wanting to support their author friends but aren't sure how.

Firstly, I've found myself explaining how royalties work and that some don't understand the process.

To clarify, the days of advances are long gone for most writers. Authors only get paid if you buy their books. And then it could be something as little as 10p per copy sold depending on the RRP of the book.

Where you buy their books is important, too.

Ebay, for example, is possibly selling used books. Yes, the author would have been paid at some point for that copy, but when you buy a second-hand book, the money is going to the seller and not the author. (And the irony is they'll make more out of the sale of the book than the author ever did).

I will argue at least with a charity shop the money is going to charity. And I would much rather a book exchanged or re-sold than burned! It can be a good way to gain new readers, too. However, we're not talking about your Stephen King's of the world. We're talking about your author friend with the other job to bring in a reliable income...

And by buying second hand, without sounding ungrateful - because it is great a new reader is trying you out - it hasn't helped boost rankings like it would have done if you'd bought the book/ebook new from Amazon. And some ebooks are cheaper than buying the paperback second-hand!

Actually, all other good ebook sellers will have rankings, so whether you've bought from Amazon, Nook, Google Play, iTunes, it would have boosted the books visibility. Authors are just obsessed with Amazon and getting into the top 100 of something!

So if you can, please buy new!

Or borrow from the library! (The author gets paid lending rights and it's not cost you a penny.)

These are the best things you can do for free to support your author friend:

• Comment on/Like/Share their Facebook posts about their books. This increases visibility and is free advertising for your friend.

• Tell people how much you've loved your author friend's books (if you've read them - if not, why not?) and recommend they buy one.

• Leave reviews on Amazon and wherever you purchased the book. Again, this increases "traffic" to your friend's book and helps others decide whether to buy the book or not. It also gives the author something to share and shout about over their social media accounts.

• Tag them on Facebook and share a photo of you reading their book. Authors like to see the exotic places their books have travelled to, even if  they've not left their front room, let alone the UK in a while... 

• Support your author friend with local book signings, help spread the word. Bring new friends along to introduce them to your author friend... or be there to drag people in off the street. Either way, your friend will be grateful. 

• If you want to avoid Amazon and prefer to support local bookshops, order the book from there. Although depending on the publisher, Amazon maybe your only go-to for paperbacks. But if you can order from a local bookshop, and you want to keep them in business too, order your books from them! But if you can't afford to buy, remember, check out your local library. 

Your author friend is not going to suddenly get rich and forget you by these small tokens of goodwill. They're more likely to hug you till you ask them politely to put you down. But if they do become the next J K Rowling, they'll remember the friends who got them there. 😉

Meet Me At Wisteria Cottage Blog Tour

It's started!

This week is my book blog tour for Meet Me At Wisteria Cottage. 

Today I'm on Cosmochicklitan's blog, talking about my writing process.

Follow me (@Teresa_Morgan10) or Harper Impulse on Twitter for the future blog tours. Or I will be adding the links to My Blog Visits page. 

Only 3 more sleeps until the paperback release... :D

Wise Words

Lately, I've been really struggling with life. I'm not suicidal, but I just feel I haven't been coping with the mundane and the repetitiveness of nagging my kids.

It's the shitty little things in life that will frustrate me the most sometimes, and try my patience, or lack of it, when I feel I only want to do something once... not twice, or three times, because it wouldn't happen the first time.

It all feels like it's deterring me from doing the thing I most enjoy: writing.

I saw this meme on Facebook today and did share it on my personal profile, but I wanted to put it on my blog too. For those also suffering with that feeling of 'life's got to be better than pairing socks' moments we need to breathe.

We should be thankful for our health, and our lives. I know that. And most of the time life treats me pretty well. But I suppose it makes us human if we get frustrated, saddened, or angry at times. We can't always be happy. It can't always be easy. Sometimes we're allowed to have that bad day, and handle it badly. Xx

Chippenham Festival "Ask The Author"

On the evening of Monday 27th June, I joined a panel with these five other lovely ladies. We gave a talk about writing romance to a small audience in Chippenham Library.

We all belong to the Bath and Wiltshire RNA Chapter organised by Rachel Brimble who was in the audience.



From left to right: Me, Alison Knight (aka Alison Rose), Louise Douglas, Pia Fenton (Christina Courtenay), Jean Burnett and Nicola Cornick.

I was extremely nervous because I hadn't done anything like this before and was worried I wouldn't know the answers.

How stupid. Of course I know the answers.

I talked of my experience, and of my opinions, and it was a lovely, fun discussion about the voices in our heads, and how we have to love our heroes. It was just as interesting to hear the other five authors' stories too.

So whether you've known you want to write since you were a child, or stumbled into it like me as something to do, working around the kids, if you want to write, then just write.

Me of course! 

You can not edit a blank page. And if you want it bad enough, and listen to good advice, you can make it.

After the talk we had in usual romance author style, homemade cakes (supplied by the lovely Ali Williams) and wine.

Alison Knight

I was so nervous that I wouldn't know what to talk about. A bit silly really when writing romance is my passion. I do need to learn to be more confident about it. And about myself. I have had two books published.

Anyway, this blog post is about sharing some pictures from the evening.

Thoroughly enjoyed myself immersed in the world of writing and talking to like minded people. :)

Can't Beat Cornwall When The Sun Shines

Ben about to brave the waves... I mean millpond.

View from coastal path to Daymer Bay

Every year, for the last twelve years, I've holidayed with my family in Polzeath, Cornwall. It's situated north of Newquay, with Padstow around its corner and is a great surfing beach.

This year the waves weren't so good, but the sunshine was fantastic! (It usually happens that way). And the wind had dropped too, which meant we could actually stand on the beach and not freeze. The water even felt warm.

To be honest, in the twelve years, the network problems still haven't improved for Vodafone, so I am cut off from the world wide web pretty much all holiday. Which is probably a good thing. I can only send text messages from the beach! I couldn't check emails, and it was hard to peruse Facebook with the sun glaring on the screen... and the kids demanding games of cricket.

Polzeath Beach

The irony is that I seem to get a better reception and 4G out on The Rumps. In my caravan, zilch.

Polzeath Beach

Anyway, I wanted to share some photographs I took. (Unfortunately some may have my children in them). This is my inspiration for Tinners Bay, for the setting/back drop of Plus One is a Lucky Number, and (if I'm lucky enough to get my third book published too), for To Love Again. (Although this title may change. I've learnt not to get attached to a title. Let's play it safe and just call it book 3, because it's the 3rd book I've written).

While walking the coastal footpaths, I wondered if I'd done this scenic coastline any justice in my books. Can't do much about Plus One is a Lucky Number, but I can certainly go back to book 3 and edit some of Polzeath's character into it.

Walking coastal path to the Rumps.

The highlight of this holiday was on Friday, 3rd June, when we strolled to the Rumps (it's a good fair trek, I tell you!) we were rewarded when we reached them, because there were two seals in a small bay below. Absolutely fascinating to watch. We were sure they were waving at us.

Sat on The Rumps

10 Years Writing

Did you know this year marks that I've been writing for ten years? Yes, that's come round fast... I thought I better blog about it! 

Writing is not something I've known I wanted to do all my life either. I sort of stumbled into it. Maybe it was always there, I just didn't realise it. 

I couldn't really tell you exactly when I started writing Fan-fiction in 2006, or when my first piece went *out there* but 2006 was the start of my writing journey... 

After writing a few pieces, and getting bigger story ideas, in the October of 2006, Becky Black convinced me to do NaNoWriMo with her. And I completed it! I wrote a fan-fiction story which was over 50,000 words.

I was pregnant with Kieran at the time and I would snatch an hour here and there in the day when Ben took his naps. Although I've never 'won' another since, this gave me good grounding for how to get a novel out there. To keep writing, no matter what, and not to look back. Do not edit as you go, just bash that thing out! Write now, edit later. And to this day, that's how I work. Some times I plan... sometimes I work a bit seats of pants style.

If you're new to writing, I very much recommend NaNoWriMo!

So by 2009 I was tinkering with the idea of writing professionally, something to work around my young family, and joined the Writers' Bureau Comprehensive Writing Course. This really helped with all sorts of areas of writing, down to presentation and writing to editors. I got bits and pieces, letters mainly published in magazines, and a big piece in the local paper, but nothing that paid.

Sue Moorcroft - RNA Conf. 2011

In 2010, I entered the first chapter of The Wedding Favour (which is now Plus One is a Lucky Number) into the Mills and Boon New Voice competition and made many online writer friends through this.

Then, through the powers of social media, talking to Sue Moorcroft, I attended the RNA's (Romantic Novelists Association) Conference in Caerleon, Wales in 2011, as a non-member. (I was thrilled to be sat beside Sue at the Gala dinner on the Saturday night - I tried not to have a fangirl moment - I absolutely love her books!). I made even more writer friends - published and non-published (like me). Here I was made aware of the New Writer's Scheme, which I joined in January 2012.

In a ten minutes slot with an editor at the RNA conference, I received feedback about The Wedding Favour on how to improve it, and after more editing of this novel, I started sending it out to publishers in 2012.

HarperImpulse party Oct 2013

For the RNA NWS, I wrote Perfect Isn't An Option (now One Fine Day) and sent that off to the New Writers' Scheme. (All while tackling separating from my husband - I look back now and wonder how I achieved it.)

Being an RNA Member in the NWS, I was able to join the Bath and Wiltshire chapter meetingin Lacock. I already knew two of the members because I'd met Rachel Brimble and Alison Knight at the conference. I tried not to have another fan girl moment when Liz Fielding, my favourite Mills and Boon author turned up as part of our chapter. Although I wasn't published, I was starting to feel more like a writer.

Then, in 2013, I put The Wedding Favour through the NWS as, although I'd received some good feedback about it, it had been unsuccessful with the publishers I'd sent it out to. However, while awaiting this feedback, through my RNA Chapter I learnt that HarperCollins were launching a new imprint, HarperImpulse, and decided to send off my manuscript.

It was a good job I was sitting down. In June 2013 I was offered a TWO book contract.

Plus One is a Lucky Number (was The Wedding Favour) was published in eBook 29th August 2013. (It was release in paperback 8th May 2014).

As it had gone through the NWS, this book also allowed me to be a contender for the RNA's Joan Hessayon award - so I attended the RNA Summer Party in 2014. I love talking to fellow writers. Although I didn't win, it was great fun, and I got to spend the evening with my delightful editor, Charlotte Ledger, who'd treated Sue Fortin and myself to cocktails at the Ritz.

Joan Hessayon Award - May 2014

January 2015 saw the release of my second novel, One Fine Day in eBook, and in paperback 12th March.

And there you are, my writing journey over the past ten years! And it's still going. I now have an agent, and I've sent my third novel off to my publisher.  So watch this space!

To all the new budding writers, keep writing. If it can happen to me, then it can happen to you, too. Sometimes it will happen quickly, sometimes it takes a little longer, but just keep writing, keep learning, improving your skill, keep reading too... and it will come.

Advent Calendar Day 20 #BeckyBlack

It's really not long now. Opening door 20 on the advent calendar to find Becky Black behind it!

Gifts for writers

Have a writer in your life? What should you buy them for Christmas? Here are a few ideas.

Pens: Yes, they have 200 pens actually in their bag right this minute. But they could always use another one, because it’s different from all the pens, and sometimes you need just the right pen at just the right time. Include refills.

Notebooks: We can never have too many notebooks. And always remember that only some of that Giant Stack of Blank Notebooks can ever actually be used. The rest are far too pretty to ruin by writing in them. They’re not for writing, they’re for having. And it’s always fun to have more.

Books: Because books are awesome. And with your help your beloved writer can get that To Read stack up to the ceiling. Gift cards for retailers who sell books are a suitable substitute.

Caffeinated beverages: Tea, coffee, cola, it’s all good. Most writers love the caffeine buzz. Or require caffeine to actually resemble a human being in the mornings. Just hand over a cup, fast and nobody gets hurt, okay?

Wine: One of the reasons for the requirement for caffeine in the morning. Because after a hard day slaving over a hot keyboard, wrangling recalcitrant characters, many writers could use a small (large) glass of wine.

Chocolate: For rewards for getting work done. For comfort after a rejection. For getting in the mood for writing those love scenes. Or just because, chocolate.

A massage: Sitting for hours messes up your back, or your neck, or your shoulders. Or all three. A bit of pampering is always welcome.

But the number 1 gift all writers want – TIME. Give the writer in your life the time to write uninterrupted. Don’t come bother them barring something or someone being on fire. When they’re done they’ll be in a much better mood with you than if you came and interrupted them just when the characters were about to kiss…

  

My latest release is Into the Sunrise, an F/F contemporary novella,  published by Loose Id.

Blurb

On the day her son leaves home, Lorna Friern makes a long-planned escape from her loveless marriage. With one suitcase, her laptop, and a box full of books, she leaves L.A. to drive to a new life in a house she’s inherited in Long Island. On the same day, after Northern Californian wildfires burn down the motel where she lives and the bar where she works, Zoe Bradshaw decides to move on again. Her destination, Las Vegas. Maybe. Or home to her family. Maybe.

The two women meet on the road and when Zoe’s old junker of a car finally gives up the ghost, she accepts the offer to travel with Lorna for a while. perhaps all the way to New York. Lorna wasn’t looking for romance so soon after leaving her marriage, but chance put Zoe in her way and Lorna doesn’t want to leave her behind. Sharing a car and motel room beds, the two women learn each other’s histories and secrets. Only at the end of the journey will they know if they’ve escaped the past to ride off together into the sunrise.

Buy direct from Loose Id: http://www.loose-id.com/into-the-sunrise.html

Or check out the buy links on the book page: https://beckyblack.wordpress.com/bookshelf/standalone-novels-and-novellas/into-the-sunrise/

Art by Mina Carter

Author Bio

Becky lives in the UK and her writing is primarily fuelled by tea and rainy days. After spending far too many years only thinking about writing she finally started putting words down back in 2003 and hasn’t stopped since, still trying to make up for lost time.

Links

Website - https://beckyblack.wordpress.com

Email - beckyblackbooks@gmail.com

Twitter -  http://twitter.com/beckyblackbooks

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/elizabethc.fb

Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4557505.Becky_Black

Fake Friday with Jenny Kane

It's been a while for my Fake Friday feature, but today I have Jenny Kane on my blog. Jenny and I get to meet up - not as often as we'd like - at our RNA Chapter meeting in Lacock. I feature on Jenny's blog a little while ago... and I wanted to return the favour. 

And so, over to Jenny...

Have you always wanted to be a writer?

No - I wanted to be an archaeologist- and I was! I didn't find out I wanted to be a writer until I was 33 years old - it happened by accident over a coffee and a Mars Bar scone…

Did you manage to get the first book you wrote published, or is it tucked in a drawer somewhere?

I did - but it took 13 years to happen! The first book I wrote, Another Cup of Coffee, was published in 2013 - 10 years after I’d had over 100 other stories, long and short, published (under the name Kay Jaybee). I simply didn’t think Another Cup of Coffee was good enough at first. It took me all that time to get it just right.

My Twitter style question: Describe your hero in 140 characters.

Rugged Cornish decorator, Max Pendale, is determined never to take a chance on love again, until he meets Abi…

My Twitter style question: Describe your heroine in 140 characters.

Young widow, petite brunette children’s illustrator, Abi Carter, is on the run from an unhappy life. A fresh start in sunny Cornwall is calling her.

What do you read while you write, or don’t you?

I tend to read genres that are opposite to those I write. Although I do sometimes read romance, I wouldn't read it while I was writing one of my own. I would be afraid the book I was reading would influence the plot I was writing.

What do you do with a paperback once you’ve read it?

I keep them. I can never bear to part with a book, even if I haven’t enjoyed it. My bookshelves couldn't be more crammed if I tried.

What’s the best bit of writing advice you’ve ever received or read?

To keep a list of all the words and phrases I tend to overuse, so that when I have finished a novel draft, I can go through the whole thing and check I haven’t been excessive with those words. For example, I am a horror for having the words ‘slightly’, ‘long’ and ‘little’ in my manuscripts too often.

What is next on your agenda after publishing your book?

Now that Abi’s House is published, I am working on adding the finishing touches to the draft of my next novel, Another Glass of Champagne. This is the fourth in my Another Cup of… series, which follows on from Another Cup of Coffee (novel), Another Cup of Christmas (novella), and Christmas in the Cotswolds (novella). This new novel will be out in early 2016.

How would your best friend describe you in 140 characters? (Another Twitter question). 

I asked one of my friends - and she said:

A work obsessed, underpaid, coffee drinking, pen wielding, novel writing, kink thinking, word loving, secretly shy person.

Tea or coffee?

Coffee - always black! I write a coffee shop blog called Have Americano and Pen…Will Travel – so I’ve sampled a lot of different black coffee’s in a huge number of café’s and coffee houses.

Starbucks or Costa?

No question - it has to be Costa. My local one even has a plaque over my usual table I write in there so often!

Chocolate or ice cream?

Chocolate.

Dogs or cats?

Dogs.

Thanks for some fab answers, Jenny, but I'm trying to do the maths and I thought you were a lot younger... lol! 

Blurb for Abi’s House:

Newly widowed at barely thirty, Abi Carter is desperate to escape the Stepford Wives lifestyle that her late husband was so keen for her to live. Abi decides to fulfil a lifelong dream. As a child on holiday in a Cornwall she fell in love with a cottage – the prophetically named Abbey’s House. Now she is going to see if she can find the place again, relive the happy memories … maybe even buy a place of her own nearby.

On impulse Abi sets off to Cornwall, where a chance meeting in a village pub brings new friends Beth and Max into her life. Beth, like Abi, has a life-changing decision to make. Max helps Abi track down the house of her dreams … but things aren’t quite that simple. There’s the complicated life Abi left behind, including her brother-in-law Simon – a man with more than friendship on his mind … Will Abi’s house remain a dream, or will the bricks and mortar become a reality?

Buy links

http://www.accentpress.co.uk/Book/12915/Abis-House

Amazon Kindle

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane-ebook/dp/B00UVPPWO8/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711175&sr=1-1&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane


http://www.amazon.com/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane-ebook/dp/B00UVPPWO8/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711253&sr=1-2&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane


Amazon Paperback

http://www.amazon.com/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane/dp/1783753285/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711253&sr=1-1&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane/dp/1783753285/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711343&sr=1-1&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane

About Jenny Kane

With a background in history and archaeology, Jenny Kane should really be sat in a dusty university library translating Medieval Latin criminal records, before writing research documents that hardly anyone would want to read. Instead, tucked away in the South West of England, Jenny Kane writes stories with one hand, while working for a Distance Learning Company with the other.

Jenny spends a large part of her time in the local coffee shops, where she creates her stories, including the novels Abi’s House (Accent Press, June 2015), Romancing Robin Hood (Accent Press, 2014), the best selling contemporary romance Another Cup of Coffee (Accent Press, 2013), and the novella length sequels Another Cup of Christmas (Accent Press, 2013) and Christmas in the Cotswolds, (Accent Press, 2014)

Jenny’s next full length novel, Another Glass of Champagne, (Part 4 of the Another Cup of... series), will be published by Accent Press in 2016.

Jenny Kane is also the author of quirky children’s picture books There’s a Cow in the Flat (Hushpuppy, 2014) and Ben’s Biscuit Tin (Coming soon from Hushpuppy)

Keep your eye on Jenny’s blog at www.jennykane.co.uk for more details.

Twitter- @JennyKaneAuthor

Facebook -https://www.facebook.com/JennyKaneRomance?ref=hl  

Jenny Kane also writes erotica as Kay Jaybee. (www.kayjaybee.me.uk)

Magical Weddings with Aileen Harkwood

Hey, it's the weekend, and I have Aileen Harkwood on my blog today talking writing, romance and magical weddings... 

Have you always wanted to be a writer?

Almost from the moment I understood books existed. Okay, maybe a little after that, since my first book was Green Eggs and Ham. I remember going to the school library in first and second grade and picking out books about the Salem witch trials. I was fascinated by them. Today, I’m writing fantasy romances with witches!

Did you manage to get the first book you wrote published, or is it tucked in a drawer somewhere?

Oh, Lord, I cringe at the idea of reading that thing. I mean, when I was seven I wrote my first “book,” but I’d call it more of an illustrated coffee table type thing (i.e. lots of drawings in crayon). My first attempt at a novel was in high school, written entirely in longhand. Some really, really bad science fiction.

My Twitter style question: Describe your hero in 140 characters.

Compassionate, charmingly brutish warlock with a heart that never gives up on love, and a power that will surprise everyone. Aragorn eyes.

My Twitter style question: Describe your heroine in 140 characters.

Repressed and introverted, yet ready to break out of her shell and find love. A witch with an old soul, brown hair and red eyelashes.

Why do you like writing romance?

Because it’s an emotionally lush genre. I like, no, I love getting swept away by a story.

Which of your characters is your favourite, and why?

Whichever character I happen to be writing at the time. They’re your babies. You have to love them all. Ideally, you should love them all equally.

What do you read while you write, or don’t you?

Yes, but never fiction. When I’m writing, I’m deep into a world of my own making, and need to stay that way. As soon as I finish with a story, I typically binge read for several days to a week.

Do you have a favourite author?

Cliché as it might be, my favorite will always be Jane Austen. I think of her as the mother of the romance novel.

What do you do with a paperback once you’ve read it?

Except for Austen’s books, plus Richard Bach’s Illusions, all paperbacks get donated to Goodwill when I’m done with them. Sad fact is, however, I almost never read “dead tree” books any more. Everything is on my Kindle Fire.

What advice would you give to new writers?

It’s the same advice I hear a lot of writers give, read. I would add to this, however, don’t just read within the genre. Don’t live solely on a steady diet of romance. Read other things, too, other genres, literature, poetry, the classics. Narrative nonfiction is especially helpful in teaching how stories happen in the real world. They aren’t always as neat and tidy as we like them to be in our HEA romance world. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying a romance novel should sound like Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary, or should end with the boat sinking and everyone dying as happened in Sebastian Junger’s The Perfect Storm. Rather, by reading things completely outside your own writer’s wheelhouse, you can bring back elements to inspire your own fiction, for instance, the cunning way an author wrote a humorous confrontation between two characters, or the way another writer was able to infuse emotion into an action sequence.

What things inspire you to write? Location, music, film or even in a book?

A lot of the time it’s setting inspiring me. Judging by comments I’ve heard at conferences, romance editors tend to believe setting is an extraneous luxury authors can’t afford, but I like to make sure my stories are well-set. Even if most of the description never makes it to the page, if I know where I am, I’ll know what the characters are looking at, and the physical sensations they experience.. It grounds the story for me, makes it more real.

What is next on your agenda after publishing your (first) book?

My contribution to the Magical Weddings box set, The Last Wedding at Drayhome, is a standalone novella, but also functions as a prequel to the Breens Mist Witches series. Spell Touched, is the first of five books in Breens Mist Witches, which follows the same hero and heroine throughout all five novels. Wedding Spell, which releases this September, is the first of a four book series, Breens Mist Weddings, each a standalone novel. I introduced most of the heroines who appear in this second series in Drayhome.

Thank you for having me on your blog, Teresa. Enjoyed these questions!

Thank you, Aileen for taking the time to answer my questions! Good luck with the Magical Weddings box set. 

THE LAST WEDDING AT DRAYHOME by Aileen Harkwood

Never underestimate the power of a witch and warlock in love who have nothing left to lose...

Every witch and warlock in Breens Mist, Oregon has one main talent that guides their destiny. Colleen McColly’s gift is to be caretaker and voice for Drayhome, a magical estate with a mind of its own. Sent under the guise of helping to prepare for a wedding, warlock Terry “Ax” Paxton has orders to evict Colleen, and end Drayhome’s century-plus-reign as the heart and soul of Breens Mist. It’s a duty against which Ax rebels, not just because it’s wrong, but because he and Colleen have a connection of their own, raw, passionate and too many years denied.

About Aileen: 

Aileen Harkwood is a Readers’ Crown finalist who lives in the Southern Rockies. The Last Wedding at Drayhome is the prequel to two concurrent series of fantasy romances, Spell Touched: Breens Mist Witches, Book 1, and Wedding Spell, first in the Breens Mist Weddings series, due out in September 2015. She’s passionate about green chile and the mysteries hiding in antique photographs.

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

Twitter: @AileenHarkwood

http://aileenharkwood.blogspot.com

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MAGICAL WEDDINGS: 15 Enchanting Romances

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1GEDBPe

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1ewV9SE

Amazon CA: http://amzn.to/1dyBCRp

B&N: http://bit.ly/1dAAdtJ

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1SrS6us

iTunes: http://apple.co/1RcL2Ai

GooglePlay: http://bit.ly/1emycBp

If you love ghosts, witches, time travel--anything paranormal--military romance, historical romance, or romantic comedy, don't miss this engaging boxed set!

--All stand-alone stories (no cliffhangers)

--Includes 14 New Releases written expressly for this set!

Whether real or only in the hearts of the bride and groom, the magic of weddings is undeniable. And irresistible! As these 15 enchanting happily-ever-afters by bestselling and award-winning authors prove.

From sweet to spicy, the romances bundled into this set cross time and unite hearts, cast spells of laughter, battle wedding jitters and fight back tears, while weaving love’s hopeful magic throughout 1400 pages.

Her Wedding Wager by Leigh Michaels, National bestselling and Award-winning author of over 100 novels. Celia's doomed to an arranged marriage—unless she can win the most important bet of her life!

The Last Wedding at Drayhome (Breens Mist Witches) by Aileen Harkwood. Never underestimate the power of a witch and warlock in love who have nothing left to lose.

The Dress by Eve Devon. Two couples, 400 years apart. From a masquerade ball in Venice 1615 to a wedding in England 2015, can a dress laced with magic weave its spell through the fabric of time?

Second Chance Bride by Raine English, USA Today bestselling and Award-winning author. She thinks she's marrying the man of her dreams, until a telepathic rescue dog leads her to someone else... Will this bride-to-be say "I do" to the wrong man?

Two Hearts Surrendered by Tamara Ferguson, Bestselling and Award-winning author. Will two warring hearts be strong enough to survive the ultimate battle?

Something Borrowed, Something Blue by Lynda Haviland. She has a wedding to crash—until love gets in the way!

Heart of the Secret (Witches of Lane County) by Jody A. Kessler, Bestselling and Award-winning author. A 500 year-old curse, a witch who will do anything to marry her one true love, and the heart of a secret that will either divide them or bring them together…forever.

The Jealous Love of a Scoundrel by Jane Lark, National bestselling author. How do you fight a calling that comes from your soul?

A Wedding Across the Winds of Time by Bess McBride, National bestselling author. Darius and Molly found each other Across the Winds of Time. Now, it's time for their wedding!

Kiss This by L.L. Muir, National bestselling and Award-winning author. You never expect the florist to catch the bouquet…

Caution is a Virtue by Jennifer Gilby Roberts. How much is too much to risk for love?

Loving Lindy by Jan Romes. In order to become the bank's new Vice President, Gunther Justin has to be "settled." With Lindy McPherson posing as his fiancé everything is set to go off without a hitch—until real feelings get in the way.

With this Kiss by Heather Thurmeier. Does a simple kiss have enough magic to reunite lovers?

Real Magic by Elsa Winckler. She's the bridesmaid, he's a best man. Will the magical evening stay just that or will it turn out to be real after all?

The Wedding Guests (A Tassamara Short Story) by Sarah Wynde. When unexpected guests attend Akira and Zane's wedding, lives will change forever. But for better or for worse?

Fake Friday - The Rachel Brimble Take Over

Today, Rachel Brimble has taken over my blog! 

Writers Block – it arrived and bit me in the butt!!

So happy to be here with fellow Romantic Novelist Association member, Teresa F Morgan! Thanks for having me visit, lovely lady.

I can’t help feeling my inability to move on with my current work in progress has been brought on by karma. I have always said that ‘writer’s block’ doesn’t exist. Just write! Anything…everything…it can always be edited, changed or cut, just write. Well, I’ve tried and tried and still I keep looking at what I’ve written and say to myself, “What in the world is that supposed to mean? Do? Say? It’s complete rubbish.”

The answer, of course, is that something is wrong with the book itself, whether that be the plot or characters…but lord in heaven knows what! Thankfully, I have an amazing editor and an amazing trio of critique partners who are stalwartly trying to pull me through this mire that is my next contracted book with Harlequin Superromance. Thanks to their feedback, I think the problem lies with my hero and his motivation. It’s flimsier than a pair of seven denier tights! No doubt, the mist will clear eventually… L

So what happens next? Back to the drawing board, I think. My editor has a lot more belief in me than I do right now but that’s what writing is, it’s a hard, dirty job that a huge amount of aspiring writers give up on. Teem the hard work, with the lack of ideas, with the time constraints, with the rejection and you’ve got to ask yourself, “WHY am I doing this?”

The answer is clear to anyone who feels, like me, they’ve found their calling…we HAVE to do this or be less than half the person we were meant to be. So onwards and upwards…watch this space for the result, which should be published during the summer 2015 J

As for other writers out there? I sincerely hope I’ve inspired, rather than depressed you, lol! You can do this and having written fourteen novels and two novellas to date, I wanted to share that it isn’t just you who suffers these days/weeks or months of inactivity, it happens to us all. Keep writing!

Rachel’s latest release is the third book in her ongoing Templeton Cove series with Harlequin Superromance. What Belongs To Her is available right now! Here’s the blurb and buy links:

She's ready to take back what's hers 

Since the moment a local crime boss claimed ownership of her family's fairground, Sasha Todd has dreamed of righting the wrong. Now it's time to act, and backing down from the man's estranged son is definitely not an option. After all, giving up her legacy to hot-blooded John Jordon means losing the chance to finally heal the wounds in her past. 

Stopping John in his tracks—and resisting the sizzle between them—is Sasha's best defense. But there's more to him than she thought, which changes everything. With what matters most at stake, she'll have to risk a brand-new future with John, or walk away from the man whose heart belongs to her.

Buy Links:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Barnes & Noble

Bio:

Rachel lives with her husband and two young daughters in a small town near Bath in the UK.  After having several novels published by small US presses, she secured agent representation in 2011. In 2012, she sold two books to Harlequin Superromance, followed by a further three book contract in 2013. She also writes Victorian romance for Kensington—The Seduction of Emily and The Temptation of Laura are available with a further two books coming soon.

Rachel is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association and Romance Writers of America. When she isn’t writing, you’ll find Rachel with her head in a book or walking the beautiful English countryside with her family and beloved black Lab, Max. Her dream place to live is Bourton-on-the-Water in South West England…although she hopes a dream visit to Canada might just change her mind!

She likes nothing more than connecting and chatting with her readers and fellow romance writers. Rachel would love to hear from you!

Links:

Website

Blog

Twitter

Facebook

 Thank you, Rachel, for taking over my blog today :-) Some good advice and you really have inspired me! Look forward to meeting up with you again soon. Teresa x 

Book Review: Little Book Of Writing Romance by Liz Fielding

Liz Fielding's Little Book of Writing Romance by Liz Fielding

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Every wannabe romance writer should read this book!

I'm a big fan of Liz's style of writing, how she makes the romance sizzle between the hero and the heroine, even in a 'sweet' romance - so to have a 'how to' book by Liz is just fab!

There are loads of examples included to help illustrate Liz's points. It really is useful.

Unlike some 'how to' books that you can start getting bored with, switching off, this book reads effortlessly. It was nice to read snippets of books I have read, and be reminded of why I loved them so much (Tempted By Trouble being one). It's also pointed out I have so many more books of Liz's to read.

Thank you, Liz, for writing such a great book and sharing your expertise.

And can I just say, I really do love the cover of this book!


View all my reviews