Celebrating Summer with A New Release! by Kathryn Hills #RomanceGems

It’s Summer 2021, and I’m celebrating by going back to my FAVORITE beach! Diamond-white sands, warm breezes, and turquoise waves. Visit the iconic Secondhand Hearts Antique Shop and stay at the charming Sandpiper Cottage out on the point. A romantic picnic on the beach? You’ve got it! A fancy dinner at The Sands Hotel in town? Absolutely! Coffee on Main Street and S'mores by the bonfire? What would summer on Last Chance Beach be without those things?

How about a sweet, summer romance you never saw coming? One that sweeps you off your feet and changes everything? That’s what my characters find in Secondhand Hearts – A Last Chance Beach Novella.

This book is novella-length, meaning it’s perfect for an afternoon by the shore or pool. Or in your favorite chair with a snuggle buddy. Did I mention there’s a dog? There’s always a pet in my books, since I adore them.

Originally part of the best-selling Last Chance Beach: Summer's End boxed set, this new release includes additional scenes and story, giving you more sun, fun, and romance on Last Chance Beach!

Available now from your favorite digital bookstore.

Life takes you down many winding paths. Will theirs lead to love on Last Chance Beach?

Tasked with convincing her beloved grandmother to move back to the mainland, Kat Worthington returns to Last Chance Beach. This vacation island paradise is filled with cherished memories, and the thought of relocating her loved one weighs heavy on Kat’s heart. Is the alternative to uproot her life, stay on the island, and help run Gran’s charming B&B and antique shop?

Handsome neighbor, Ben Hadley, sure hopes it is. He and his playful pup are doing their best to upend Kat’s plans. Will their efforts convince her to stay?

Or will it require some of Gran’s special island magic?

Heads up! My next Last Chance Beach Romance is coming this September. You bet, we're going back to the beach for a Halloween-themed romance! 

Can a weekend visit to Last Chance Beach undo decades of brokenhearted memories? Conjuring up some island magic might just be the trick. Or treat!

It’s October, and Last Chance Beach is celebrating with an island-wide Fall Festival. Everyone will be there, including the ghost that haunts Sandpiper Cottage B&B.

Will a weekend getaway bring romance or revelation to two near strangers? Can they survive family gatherings and back-to-back Halloween events while pretending to be a couple?

Pre-Order Sand, Salt, and Spirits today!

Thanks for reading. See you at the beach, everyone!

~ Kathryn 

Find Kathryn Hills Online 

Website * Facebook

Twitter * Amazon Author Page * BookBub

 

Say Yes to Romance by @JoanReeves #RomanceGems

Pop-up Giveaway Today!

Have you noticed that some people like to judge a person based on reading choice?

When this first happened to me many years ago, I was taken aback when someone asked me when I was going to write a "real" romance.

I'd thought this mindset had changed, but you still hear the romance genre denigrated on movies and television and in real life too.

I really thought that was all in the past, but it happened again.

Someone asked what I "do." I replied that I was a writer. Of course the next question was what did I write. My answer—romance—was met with a choked laugh and, "Oh, I don't read those kinds of books."

Too many people think those who read romance are lacking in intelligence, maturity, and question our grasp on reality. As to what they think of those who write romance, well, it's not much better. They say we write formula books that anyone can write.

Back in the "cocky gate" trademark uproar earlier this year, the judge who rendered the decision that the woman who had successfully filed for protected trademark of the word "cocky" didn't have the right to sue anyone who used that word in a written work because, I'll paraphrase here, he hadn't read those kind of books but was certain they were written in the romance genre which was simplistic and formulaic, blah blah blah.

I don't know how many times I've been told or read from critics that we write about unrealistic people in unrealistic situations—as if writing about a man and woman seeking love in a committed relationship was something that happens only in an alternate reality, which would make it more suitable to science fiction perhaps.

If these naysayers were correct, there would be no long-term happy marriages. I have one of those, and know many other women who do also. Just about all my friends—especially those who write—have that kind of relationship too.

Ever Loved?

Anyone with an ounce of intelligence know that love is worth having, and it can still be found in this crazy world.

We know it's not easy. We know it requires work and commitment, and we are willing to make that investment in a relationship.

We like to read romance, not because it's fantasy, but because we believe in the power of love, and in a book—particularly a romance novel—we know that wrongs will be righted, good will prevail over evil, love will prevail against all odds. We like that optimism and want to find it in real life even though we know good doesn't always win because we are smart and in touch with reality.

We who read and write romance are not hopeless romantics but hopeful romantics. Always hopeful that love will prevail in this crazy, war-wracked world of ours where there's so much hate that fills the headlines.

I feel sorry for anyone who reads only "real" books—usually meaning a sad, dramatic tome with a depressing ending. I read widely in every genre, but romance offers something most stories don't. Hope. Optimism.

I love what Sandra Cisneros said in an article about what literary lions read: "I never feel guilty about reading any kind of book. Books are medicine, each one a specific prescription for whatever ails us."

Bottom Line

Never be ashamed of your reading taste. Love is empowering.

At the end of life, love is the only thing that remains.

I've sat a death vigil, and I know that in that last breath of life, the dying person wants only to whisper words of love to those who remain.

What Do You Think?

Leave a comment with your email address and tell me what you think about romance and the naysayers.

I'll choose a random commentator with email Sept. 23, Monday, 8pm CDT to receive a free copy of April Fool Bride, a romance guaranteed to leave you with a smile. I'll notify by email and here on this post in Comments.

Remember to Enter the Rafflecopter

Don't forget to enter our September Rafflecopter Giveaway, Back to School? Back to You!

The kids are back to school. Now it’s time to pamper yourself a little. September’s Giveaway features Winner’s Choice of Amazon Gift Cards or Gifts for Reading and Pampering.

The Rafflecopter runs through Sept. 27 so there's still time to enter.

The prizes are listed on our Monthly Giveaway page, along with the entry form. Or click here to go straight to the entry form!

Romantic Comedy by Karen Kelley #RomanceGems

 I often laugh at inappropriate times. I mean, not like at a funeral or anything. You see, I have these little movies that I see in my head. I'm pretty sure there are a lot of people just like me who are in mental wards. I want to scream out the injustice of it all. Yell out to someone who might listen, "They might be a writer! Set them Free! Unless they're a serial killer or something equally horrific!"

Seriously (or not) I love writing romantic comedy. It's not just comedy. I love dark comedy, too, although I don't think I've written dark comedy. Maybe I should give it a try. Like the person who came up with the idea of inserting fireworks into the dead person about to be cremated. I'm pretty sure I could convince one or two of my friends to follow through with that one if I go first. Talk about going out with a bang! Can you just see the expression on the morticians face?

Slapstick comedy is one of my favorites. I love the very politically incorrect like Blazing Saddles. The last really funny movies I watched were The Hustle and The Spy Who Dumped Me.

My Flocked series has been a fun series to write. Flock You!, Flocked Up! and available for preorder, I Don't Give A Flock! which is probably a tad politically incorrect. It just depends on how you look at it. It was fun to write, what can I say? Check it out:

 Shannon

Yes, I probably shouldn’t have slid down my boss’ banister, but it was a long, hard, and inviting banister. How could I have known that he would come back early from vacation, that I wouldn’t be able to stop, or that I would fly off the end, knock him down, and end up on top of him? And no, people, my you-know-what did not land on his face!

And yes, I was supposed to be there. I was babysitting his sister’s dog while her house was being fumigated. But now he’s here, and I’m having erotic fantasies, but I’m desperate to buy a new washer and dryer, so I need to stop having these naughty thoughts, which I do.

That is, until my free-thinking mother sends me brownies from California.

Except there was a slight problem with the shipment.

 

Garrett

Women usually want one thing from me—money. But when Shannon slides down my banister, I know I want her. I have a feeling she might actually be different from all the others. She’s funny and smart. And hot. Did I mention hot? I can’t seem to get the image of her sliding down my banister out of my mind.

Then the brownies arrive. The best I’ve ever had.

Yes, Shannon is good. Real good. I should’ve known she was like all the others. How the hell could I have ended up in Vegas, married to the biggest con artist of them all?

I hope you enjoyed the preview of, I Don't Give A Flock! and if you'd like to order it, the links are below.

 

Don't forget to enter our September Rafflecopter Giveaway – Back to School ... Backto You!
The prizes are listed on our GIVEAWAY TAB above, along with the entry form. You can also click HERE to go straight to the entry form!

Kids are back to school. Now it’s time to pamper yourself a little. September’s Giveaway features Winner’s Choice of Amazon Gift Cards or Gifts for Reading and Pampering.
Dates: Sept. 4 through 27^th. Winnerchooses from gift item or Amazon Gift Card.

 

 

                                           Click HERE to preorder

 

Karen Kelley

www.authorkarenkelley.com

 

Woman + Man + Sex = Funny by @JoanReeves #RomanceGems

Yes, the equation in the title is the formula for romantic comedy because it often works out that way in real life.

Some comedian once said if aliens from outer space observed us having sex that they'd be convinced we were crazy people who should be avoided.

Women were asked in a study some years back what they found most appealing in men. The number 1 answer was not a buff bod or money or charm. It was a sense of humor, especially if a man made them laugh. Women love that. So add romance to the comedy and you have a sexy cocktail.

I cut my teeth on watching old romantic comedy movies on TV. My love of the classic romance comedy is one reason I write in that sub-genre.

When a reader tells me she laughed so hard her family thought she was crazy (review for Still The
One), that just makes my day.

Available At Amazon

I think to successfully write romantic comedy, you must know the genre. The best way is to watch movies from the oldies to the new ones.

Human nature hasn't changed much in all the decades, and we find the same things funny, sexy, and appealing now as we did when the movie greats were getting laughs and getting sexy.

If you’d like to waste invest some time in advancing your appreciation of some of the most critically lauded romantic comedy films, here are a few suggestions.

Golden Oldies

It Happened One Night, 1934, starring Claudette Colbert and Clark Gable. Runaway heiress meets a reporter who wants to exploit her story. Key element? The walls of Jericho. Watch the movie and you’ll understand.

Bringing Up Baby, 1938, starring Katherine Hepburn as a zany rich girl who turns uptight Cary Grant’s life into chaos. Key elements? A baby leopard and a dinosaur skeleton.

Pillow Talk, 1959, was the first pairing of Doris Day and Rock Hudson. Womanizing songwriter and uptight interior designer share a telephone party line, and that’s when the games begin. (Ask your older relatives if you don’t know what a party line is.) A party line was a true test of one’s integrity. My cool hip daughter loves this movie so much she bought a DVD of it and the other Doris Day/Rock Hudson films. In several romantic comedies of that era, Tony Randall was the hero’s best friend and was hilarious in his second banana role in each film. He’s the kind of secondary character every romantic comedy needs.

Lover Come Back Made, 1961, starred Rock Hudson and Doris Day again. In this flick, Rock and Doris are advertising executives who disdain each other’s client recruitment methods. When Doris decides to exact a little revenge, she gets way more than she bargained for. Oh, my! The scene when Tony Randall is driving a heartbroken Doris back to the city, and they stop at a diner is hysterical!

That Touch of Mink Made, 1962, paired Doris Day with Cary Grant in a movie that confronts the virgin versus the player issue. He’s handsome, rich, and charming. She’s lovely and works though she’s not a career woman. They’re equally captivated, but she wants marriage, and, of course, he wants an affair.

Cactus Flower Made, 1969, was Goldie Hawn’s film debut with Walter Matthau as the older rich player, and the renowned Ingrid Bergman as his nurse who's secretly in love with him. What a romp this is! Yeah, it, and all the ones above are outdated in terms of our culture, but I bet you’ll laugh.

Fast Forward

In more recent years, there have been a lot of romantic comedy films made, but most of them fall short. They either throw in elements that are crude, not sexy–and they have no brilliant writers on staff to turn it into funny and sexy–or they’re derivative, lesser films with no freshness.

In no particular order, here are some outstanding RomComs from the 1970's to the current year:

Pretty Woman
Notting Hill
About a Boy
Love Actually
Something New
My Big Fat Greek Wedding
Sweet Home Alabama
The American President
Groundhog Day
When Harry Met Sally
The Princess Bride
Better Off Dead
Sixteen Candles
The Goodbye Girl

Heaven Can Wait
What's Up, Doc?
Overboard
Working Girl
Some Kind of Wonderful
Baby Boom
Murphy's Romance
French Kiss
Grosse Point Blank
The Holiday
Leap Year
Always Be My Maybe
In a World
Silver Lining Playbook, some might not see this as a rom com, but listen to the dialogue
Crazy Rich Asians, this also might seem an odd choice, but it plays with preconceptions.

Do some of those I listed strike your funny bone? If not, what are some of your favorites?

Leave comments with your favorite romantic comedy movies. I'll do a random draw this week from all comments left with email addresses and give away a copy of Still The One.

By the way, remember to click Rafflecopter to enter our Beaches and Book Boyfriends Giveaway, or click to go to our Monthly Giveaway page, and enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway there.

July Prizes

Grand Prize: a $20.00 Amazon Gift Card

Second Prize: a $15.00 Amazon Gift Card

Third Prize: a $10.00 Amazon Gift Card

Fourth Prize: 2 print books, each autographed and mailed by the author

5th, 6th, and 7th Prizes: Eboook bundles of 3 Ebooks each

Enter today!

Only 99 cents? Oh my! by Karen Kelley

I currently have Temperature's Rising on sale for 99 cents. How fantastic is that? This is a full-length, standalone, romantic comedy. Here's a little bit of Temperature's Rising:

 

Arresting the police chief's daughter was Conor's first mistake...

     

      Conor Richmond thought the woman in front of him looked a little desperate, and sexy as hell. He wondered why she worked the streets. He figured her more for a high-priced call girl than a street hooker.

    
     New in town, maybe? Like him?


     Except she wanted to start a business. And the way she looked, it wouldn’t take her long to have a whole string of Johns begging for her favors and willing to shell out more than a couple of hundred dollars. If she cleaned up a little, that is, and bought some decent clothes. Her hose were ripped so bad she’d do better without them, and her skirt looked like she’d dug it out of the Salvation Army trash bin.


     A niggle of pity washed over him. What had driven her to this way of life? Drugs? Her eyes were a little red-rimmed. She could be a user, although he didn’t see any track marks running up her arms.


     But underneath the smudge of dirt on her face and the worn clothes, he saw a sensuous woman, and he had a hell of a time keeping his gaze from straying. The amount of cleavage showing beckoned him to bury his face in her lush curves.


     The view only got better. Her long, silky legs drew his attention even if her hose were shredded. They were the kind of legs made to wrap around a man. Pulling him deeper and deeper inside her hot body. Yeah, she was made for sex. The kind that got down and dirty.


     A carload of boys driving by whistled and honked their horn. She looked momentarily distracted, then tossed a saucy grin in their direction as they laughed and sped down the street.


     The smile transformed her face. Meant to pull an unsuspecting male into her web. Conor wasn’t immune to her charms any more than the next poor sucker would be. But he wasn’t her next customer, either. Sometimes he hated his job.


     “Don’t you think two hundred’s a little steep?” he asked.


     She wet her lips, her gaze returning to his. A temptress. Conor inwardly groaned.


     “Not for what you’ll get.”

     The way she said the words, kind of husky, made him wish just for a few hours he could pretend he wasn’t a cop. Made him wish he hadn’t seen her standing on the sidewalk. And made him wish that for a moment he hadn’t thought she looked out of place and vulnerable. Man, had he misjudged. She was a pro, all right. Her sultry eyes promised sinful delights.


     His gaze was drawn to her low-cut blouse again when her hand moved toward the buttons...just as the gesture was meant to do. His vision clouded as he remembered the way she’d walked down the sidewalk. Hell, how could he forget! Hips swaying seductively, and the way she’d slowly turned back around so he could see what he’d be giving up if she chose to keep going. He’d burned all the way down to his boots. No, she knew exactly what she did to him.


     “And what will I get for my money?” he asked, wanting her to spell it out.


     Her eyes widened innocently. “Why, everything, of course.”


     Sliding his hand into his pocket, he emerged with a roll of crisp, green bills. Thumbing them, he drew two out and handed them to her. She took the money, looking a little confused, he thought, but decided it was part of her act. He pocketed the rest.


     “A down payment?” she asked, staring at the bills.

     Figured. She knew she had him by the balls. Why not twist a little harder? Get as much of his cash as she could.


     “Is that okay?” He stepped forward. So near, her scent washed over him, bathing him with erotic fantasies. She might look like she’d been sleeping in the streets, but she smelled oh-so-sweet. She raised her head. Her lips so close. So kissable. He ached to pull her into his arms and see if her mouth was as hot as it looked.


     “I...suppose.”


     Too bad.


     In one swift motion, he reached behind him, drew the handcuffs from the leather case hooked to his belt, and snapped them shut over her wrists.


     A shame he couldn’t have met her in another place. He had a gut feeling they would’ve been good together.


     “Lady, you’re under arrest for solicitation."

 

     I hope you enjoy Temperature's Rising! And don't forget about our monthly give away. We have some terrific prizes this month.

 

Best Wishes,

Karen Kelley
www.authorkarenkelley.com

Don't forget the June giveaway! To enter , visit our Monthly Giveaway Page. Or click the direct link here: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/21df08a224/

Click to Purchase Now for 99 cents

 

 

Sassy, Snarky, Sarcastic: Who Me? by @JoanReeves #RomanceGems

My mouth used to get me in trouble all the time!

Okay, so it wasn't actually my mouth that got me in trouble. The problem was the words that came out of my mouth.

Miniature Dorothy Parker

When I was a child, I had the unfortunate habit of saying what was on my mind.

Somehow, I looked at the world around me and always came up with a comment worthy of Dorothy Parker.

While her witticisms and acerbic comments gained Ms. Parker the rep of possessing a biting, sophisticated wit, it gained me the reputation of being a sassy little girl with a smart mouth. Trust me, being sassy or being called "smart mouthed" wasn't considered praiseworthy in my small southern town.

Joan talks too much in school.

While a sassy assessment of people and events might be wonderful for a stand-up comedienne in training, it wasn't considered so wonderful by my parents or teachers. I remember a comment my third-grade teacher wrote on the back of my report card: "Joan talks too much in school."

Oh, my! That did not endear me to the teacher or to my parents even though the remark didn't surprise them. I think they'd already given up their effort to teach me that children should be seen and not heard.

Sassy Mouth Makes For Writing Talent

Fortunately, I developed the ability to filter what I thought. Now I utter the unadorned truth about what I think only to my Darling Husband.

Sometimes he laughs. Sometimes he rolls his eyes and calls me a smartass. Then he kisses my smart mouth. Not once has he ever told me to be quiet. Oh, how I love that man!

Besides, now I let heroines mouth off. I like to write heroines who are armed with an arsenal of sass and aren't afraid to use it. All my books have a lot of dialogue, whether they're romantic comedy or romantic suspense, so those girls have ample opportunity to speak what they think.

Readers often tell me that they laugh out loud at the conversations between characters.

In Just One Look, my heroine Psychologist Jennifer Monroe uses words, innuendo, and sexual tension to twist her hero, Gynecologist Dr. Matthew Penrose, into a pretzel.

It's so freeing for characters to say things I'd like to say, but never do.

Probably because I still hear the voices of my teachers and my parents telling me to think before I speak so I don't sound like a sass mouth.

Smart, Sassy Women Speak

I honor the smart–and the smartass–women who uttered these quotations below. I like sassy quotes. I used some of my favorite quotations as a literary motif, prefacing each chapter with a sassy quote, in my romantic comedy, Old Enough To Know Better. The quotation kind of foreshadows what the chapter is about.

I find the response to this book interesting. It's an older woman/younger man story. Of 4 reviews this year, 3 loved it and 1 absolutely hated it! Funny how those reviews came in just days apart. When that happens, it really makes you realize—again—how subjective reading taste is.

Warning: Hot as the Texas Summer of the story.

Here are some of the quotes I used in Old Enough To Know Better plus a few other favorites.

“I'm not offended by all the dumb blonde jokes because I know I'm not dumb ... and I also know that I'm not blonde.” ~Dolly Parton

“You see a lot of smart guys with dumb women, but you hardly ever see a smart woman with a dumb guy.” ~Erica Jong

“A large income is the best recipe for happiness I ever heard of.” ~Jane Austen

“If high heels were so wonderful, men would be wearing them.” ~Sue Grafton

“When women are depressed they either eat or go shopping. Men invade another country.” ~Elayne Boosler

"I don't have much fear of getting older, but I do dread that someday a wicked genie will make me go back and live my 20's all over again." ~Elizabeth Gilbert

Cinderella Blue has heroine armed with a smart mouth and a Glock.

"Love is like the measles. The older you get, the worse the attack." ~Mary Roberts Rinehart, The Man in Lower Ten

"I used to be Snow White, but I drifted." ~Mae West

"Love is a game that two can play and both win." ~Eva Gabor 

Bringing in a Man to Close

Here's an excerpt from In Praise of Older Women, an essay often attributed to Andy Rooney, but actually written by Frank Kaiser.

You can find the entire text of Mr. Kaiser's essay here.

“Once you get past a wrinkle or two, an older woman is far sexier than her younger counterpart. Her libido’s stronger, her fear of pregnancy gone. Her experience of lovemaking is honed and reciprocal, and she’s lived long enough to know how to please a man in ways her daughter could never dream of. (Young men, you have something to look forward to.)” ~Frank Kaiser

Pop Up Giveaway

Famous Quotation by Dorothy Parker

I'll give away 1 Kindle edition of 1 of the 3 books mentioned in my post.

Leave a comment with your email address written out. (Don't leave it as  a hot link.)

Tell me if you speak your mind or if you're discreet (unlike me) and refrain from snarky comments.

On June 3, our Rafflecopter begins. Check out our Monthly Giveaway page now to see all the great prizes.

On Monday, June 3, I'll select a winner by random draw from all the comments with an email addy. I'll notify the winner by email and also post her name in comments on this post.

June is going to be great! Enjoy the golden sunshine and have nothing but happy days.

TALKING TO STRANGERS by Hannah Rowan #RomanceGems

My husband went to the men’s room while we were waiting for the server to bring our check.  By the time he returned I was deep in a discussion with a group of women at the next table about the incompetence of the waiter, the dirtiness of the restaurant, where we lived, where we were thinking of living in the future, what our children did for a living, and other little things like that.

“I was only gone for five minutes,” my husband said.

Yes, but the ladies and I bonded over the fact that the waiter took off with our credit cards many minutes before and was now possibly shopping at a nearby mall and we were never coming back to this restaurant again.

“How do you know so much about these people?” my husband will ask.

I don’t know.  It just happens!  People tell me things.

Okay, maybe I ask a lot of questions.

But I know that one of the clerks at the grocery store works there part time while holding down a full-time job and working on a book about aliens.

And another works there while going to school to be a nurse.

My husband grows somewhat alarmed because he knows if I go to the ladies’ room in a restaurant, I’m likely to be gone a while because I’m listening to someone’s latest story.

I know a lot about the people in the post office, the library, and my favorite card store.  But I also find out about the people sitting next to me on a bus, on a plane, or in the doctor’s waiting room.

What I don’t understand is how someone can not know these things. My husband will get off the phone with a friend or relative and I’ll ask what the person said.

“Oh, nothing,” he’ll say. 

But they’ve been talking for 10 minutes.

I’ll ask why his friend is getting a divorce, or why they’ve decided to move to another state, or why they’re inviting us to their house for dinner.  A party?  Do I need to bring a gift?  He never knows!

Perhaps it’s the writer in me, gathering all these little bits and pieces of other people’s lives and filing them away to possibly pull out and twist around an fit them into a story.

Or maybe I’m just a pathologically nosy person who never learned not to talk to strangers.

Where's Joan by @JoanReeves #RomanceGems

Where's Joan?

Do you remember the children's book Where's Waldo?

Lately, I feel as if I could star in Where's Joan, my version of that adventure book.

I've been in Louisiana at my older brother's farm where I was staying to take care of my sister-in-law after her second major surgery.

I've been at more hospitals and doctors' office than I can count as I shepherded her and my brother to appointments.

I enjoyed the time spent with my brother and sister-in-law because, like most families, we see each other most often during the holidays.

The drive home was long, but I enjoyed the scenery of wildflowers. Louisiana has red clover blooming along most highways. When I reached Texas, I was treated to the first bluebonnets of the season.

April Showers Bring May Flowers

1st bloom by our Country Home

April is one of my favorite months because of all the wildflowers blooming along Texas roadsides. Most people have heard of bluebonnets, our state flower.

Not as many are acquainted with the other colorful flowers that begin blooming in March with different flowers popping up from spring and into the heat of summer.

We have orange Indian Paintbrush, Mexican Blankets that are a rust red, yellow, and brown daisy-like flower, bright yellow bitterweeds, pink evening primroses, purple wine cups, and sunflowers just to mention a few.

Oh, and there's also Texas Bluebells, a pale blue flower that's as aromatic as roses.

Blue Bell ice cream took its name for the Texas flower of the same name. The story goes that the Blue Bell Creamery was built in a field of bluebells.

Houston Blooms

March begins the azalea parade in Houston. Just about everyone grows azaleas in their yards, and the Azalea Trail Tour is an annual event where you can visit gardens that would make Monty Don, England's Master gardener, weep with joy!

April Fool Bride

In April Fool Bride, a Contemporary Marriage of Convenience Romance, Maddie Quinn is trudging through the gray slush of melting snow in New York and wishing she were home where the azaleas were blooming.

But Maddie is a woman with a mission. She needs to be married by the time she turns 25 in order to take control of her trust fund.

Mad Maddie, as the tabloids christened her, learned the hard way that men only see dollar signs when they look at her. She's decided the perfect solution is a marriage of convenience.

The man she chooses is the only one she thinks she can trust. He was her only friend when they were growing up together.

Jake Becker hasn’t seen Maddie since the night she tried to seduce him. Why should he agree to help the woman who changed the course of his life?

Simple. Revenge.

Or is it something else?

Something that sizzles like steam heat between Maddie and Jake that neither can resist?

April Fool Bride is Book 1 of All Brides Are Beautiful.

This funny, sexy romance is a free read if you're a Kindle Unlimited subscriber.

Or, buy if for only $2.99 and keep it forever.

Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt

If you haven't seen the details on this month's Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt you can check out all the information, including how to enter, on the Monthly Giveaway page at the top of the blog.

I'm participating, and you can gather Easter Eggs at one of the following web locations:

Facebook | Twitter | SlingWords

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The Writing Process by Karen Kelley #RomanceGems

     Or I could've titled this Staring At A Blank Page. That's how it all starts, no matter who you are. But I'm getting ahead of myself. The first thing that happens is the glimmer of an idea. The 'what if'.

     Right now, I'm staring out the window at another RV. I rarely see the man next door, and I've never seen him with a companion.

     What if (note: now we're playing the 'what if' game) he killed her (a little horror and suspense)?

     Or what if his wife passed and they loved RVing so he set the RV up and comes out on the weekends to relive those moments? Now we're going into drama.

     Or what if he's staring at our RV right this very minute. If that's the case, he's probably a comedy writer.  

     Step two, or is this step three: Procrastination. I have a great story. I can see it playing out inside my head as if I'm watching a movie. I'm staring at my laptop...

     I probably should wash a load of clothes. Oh darn, I forgot to put bread on my grocery list. I want to go to the Farmers Market this weekend. They have the best homemade jelly.

     NO!  I'm going to write! Think about characters, think about storyline. Deep breath...

     Actually, that's pretty much the way I start a new book. I think that's why it was easy to write Dangling...Participle? The first book in my Hayes Brothers series. Katie is a wannabe romance author. She has all the doubts and fears that go along with wanting something, but being uncertain about her ability to actually write a book. It doesn't help that her sisters and mother want her to get a 'real' job.

     Then she meets Jaxson. He'll help her in ways she never expects.

     Dangling...Participle is a steamy romantic comedy and shares some of the insights into a writing career. I hope you enjoy the story, and the series.

     And don't forget about entering for the chance to win free books or a Kindle Fire:

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Best Wishes,

Karen Kelley

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