NO DO-OVERS FOR ME! by Hannah Rowan #RomanceGems

Do you save books to reread?  Do you like to repeat old movies?

I have friends who have books they call “keepers,” which they keep on their shelves to pull  out when they’re feeling down and want the comfort of a familiar story, a guaranteed happy ending.

I don’t get it!

I can’t read a book more than once.  Sometimes I’ll pick up a book, not realizing it’s one I’ve already read, and I know by the time I get to the second page.  No matter how much I enjoyed it the first time, I must put it away.

If I’m reading a romance I can be sure I’ll get a happy ending.  The suspense for me is figuring out how the author is going to accomplish that when at first the two people involved seem so unlikely to be compatible.

I like surprises in the stories I read.  I like books where I’m wondering how the author is going to pull this off. I enjoy discovering that a supposedly sweet and wholesome character is actually the evil mastermind behind whatever dastardly deeds are going on.

On the other hand, there are times when I’ve figured out the mystery before the characters in the book do.  Really, how can they be so oblivious?  I’m excessively excited when I turn out to be right.  I’m even more excited when I’m wrong for a good reason.

I cannot re-watch movies or TV shows.  I’m not even happy with the remakes of movies I’ve already seen in their original form.

There are too many new stories out there for me to be interested in one I’ve already finished.

Do you enjoy revisiting a favorite story? If so, can you tell me why?

Don't Forget the July Giveaway!

This month we're having fun with Beaches and Book Boyfriends!

Our Rafflecopter is open, so you can go online and enter! The Giveaway runs through July 25.

You can watch a video about our giveaway in Movie Theater or on YouTube.

The Monthly Giveaway page lists all the prizes. Enter often and tell your friends about Romance Gems.

Unbreakable by @ElsaKurt #RomanceGems

A Story

 It's a quick one. Some time ago, while scrolling my social media pages, I came across a status update from a friend of one of my daughters. They were teens at the time. It was the usual melodrama of which most (if not all) us females can raise a hand to and say "Guilty as charged!" But one sentence really caught my attention. She said, "It's over. I'm broken. He's broken me." It made me angry. Not at the boy though. At her. I wanted to shake her and say, "Screw him, honey. Don't you dare give him that kind of power over you!" Then I reminded myself how easy it is to be objective when you're just a spectator. So, I wrote this instead. It's for any girl - grown or young - who's ready to hear about her strength. It's for after a well-deserved pity party, that pint of Haggen Dazs, the retail therapy, and the cry fest. Ready? Here we go...

Broken

https://www.deviantart.com/daniel-rocal/art/Broken-Heart-396777338

We hear this word so often in the context of humans, of human relationships. It bothers me. It gets right under my skin and digs like a splinter - one of those tiny ones you can feel but can't quite get at. Broken? Yes, I know what they mean, how they mean it, and that is exactly why it bothers me. Another thorn - or splinter, I suppose - you rarely hear guys use this term about themselves. Broken. It's usually girls. And that makes... me.... crazy. Not because I want guys to feel this way, but because I don't want girls - women - to feel this way.



powerofpositivity.com

Be Unbroken

Indulge me and my need to share this message for anyone who is feeling like that six letter word: You are not broken. You are unbreakable, unbroken. Things get broken, humans get hurt. That may sound like semantics, but it's psychology. To suggest that you are broken - that someone has broken you - is to say that you are nothing more than glass, or a toy, or any inanimate object that can be turned into non-working pieces. You are not that.

You are not glass, or wood, or plastic. You are flesh and bone and mind and body. Yes, something may break your bones, puncture your skin, but you have been made, designed to heal.
You are neither fragile, nor delicate, nor incapable of fortitude. Words will not destroy you... unless you give them the power to. Your heart will continue to beat, air will still fill your lungs. You will inhale and exhale as you have always done. Your lungs and your heart are telling you - you are not broken.

Truth

When your heart has been hurt - hurt, not broken-  and you believe at that moment you will never love, never trust again, know that you are wrong. Cry. Feel. Hurt. Do all of those things. But then? Well then, put it away. Let it go (don't sing it, don't sing it... too late). 

Carry lessons, not burdens on your back or bitterness in your heart.

You may not know it yet, but in your mind, you're building your 'perfect-for-you' guy with the help of the 'not-right-for-you' guys. 

Thank them for their contributions to your growth, because now you know what you don't want from another human being. More importantly, though: you are building you. If you are building yourself with jagged pieces, you will be a jagged human. You're worth more than that. So much more.

Indomitable Spirit

So, embrace your hurt and your heartache. And if you're not ready yet, it's okay. Come back to this, or things like it every day until you don't need to. One day the hurt and heartache will become your badges of courage, a testament to your strength. You'll bear those invisible scars with pride and dignity because you have let nothing, no one, break you. No one broke your spirit, it is indomitable. No one has undermined your self-worth, stole your ability to be kind or to care. You've recognized your own faults, and forgiveness has set you free.

You are unbreakable.

My Why

For all the things that make me a woman - from the obviousness of biology, to my roles as a daughter and mother, my privilege of having a great network of female friends and acquaintances, and my own experiences in the subject, it has been my passion and joy to use my platform to encourage and inspire other women through my heroines. 

The women in my new series, Welcome to Chance, are all so different, and yet they each find their own strength against whatever obstacles I throw their way. They are a nail-biting, rollercoaster joy for me to develop as the series grows and I hope you'll enjoy their journeys as much as I do. Book One, Mae's Cafe is now available HERE. Book Two, Rosabelle's Way releases on July 31st, and Book Three, Georgie's Secret, in September. Four through Six will follow on a similar schedule. - xoxo

Click HERE to Buy

RELEASING JULY 31ST

Don't Forget the July Giveaway!

This month we're having fun with Beaches and Book Boyfriends!

(P.S. My book boyfriend for all time: Fitztwilliam Darcy from Pride and Prejudice. Tell me yours in the comments!)



Our Rafflecopter is open, so you can go online and enter! The Giveaway runs through July 25.

You can watch a video about our giveaway in Movie Theater or on YouTube. (I appreciate LIKEs and shares on your social media pages.)

The Monthly Giveaway page lists all the prizes. Enter often and tell your friends about Romance Gems.

Romance Gems July Rafflecopter Giveaway

Tangled Memories on sale in July at #Smashwords #RomanceGems

The 11th Annual Smashwords Summer/Winter Sale, takes place Monday July 1, 2019, through Wednesday July 31, 2019.

My book Tangled Memories is on sale during this time at a 50% discount only at Smashwords.

Tangled Memories is a special book to me because it was one of the first books I wrote, and because it became a finalist in the Romance Writers of America’s Golden Heart contest in 1994.

It then had a strange route to publication. I “sold” it to one of the first ebook publishers in 1999 before the advent of decent e-readers. That didn’t go so well, because technology hadn’t advanced enough for ebooks. Later I contracted with ImaJinn Books for a paperback version. Once I had my rights back again, ebooks were now gaining popularity, and I contracted with two ebook publishers for a while.

Today Tangled Memories has been revised and gone through another edit, and I publish it myself.

Tangled Memories is a gothic romance. Wikipedia has a big description of the history of this genre that goes back to 1764 and English author Horace Walpole’s novel The Castle of Otranto. Wikipedia calls my kind of gothic romance “new.”

Gothic Romances of this description became popular during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, with authors such as Phyllis A. Whitney, Joan Aiken, Dorothy Eden, Victoria Holt, Barbara Michaels, Mary Stewart, and Jill Tattersall. Many featured covers depicting a terror-stricken woman in diaphanous attire in front of a gloomy castle, often with a single lit window.

These novels usually concern spirited young women, either governesses or new brides, who go to live in large gloomy mansions populated by peculiar servants and precocious children and presided over by darkly handsome men with mysterious pasts.

This is exactly what happens to my heroine Mary in Tangled Memories.

After losing his wife, Dr. Alexander Dominican is determined his infant daughter will not grow up motherless as he did. Offering sensible, kind kindergarten teacher Mary Adams a marriage of convenience seems like the perfect solution. The widow’s husband left her with a mountain of debt. For Alex, paying it off is a small price to pay for his daughter’s happiness. Until his sensible new wife begins to lose her mind.

On the day of their marriage, Mary starts having frightening hallucinations of medieval England—visions that feel more like the memories of woman who lived centuries before. More terrifying, someone—or some thing—is stalking the new mistress of Marchbrook Manor. Could it be one of the sinister servants? Or Alex himself? Alex is reawakening hidden desires and longings in Mary, but until she can untangle the web of nightmares and secrets, she can trust no one. Not even Alex.

Alex has no idea he’s unleashing a destiny that’s taken him seven hundred years to fulfill.

If Alex and Mary are to salvage their future, they must first unravel centuries of…Tangled Memories.

So, if this description sounds interesting to you, snag a copy of Tangled Memories at Smashwords for a 50% discount.

BIRTHDAY WISHES

Before I leave, I need to say happy birthday to my favorite Beatle! Ringo Starr born today in 1940. And yes inquiring minds, I saw the Beatles twice as a teenager. Tickets were $5.50. I screamed and cried.

Photo credit http://dailyman40.com/

BEACHES & BOOK BOYFRIENDS

Don't forget to enter our July Giveaway. Visit our Monthly Giveaway Page to see the prizes.

Romance Gems July Rafflecopter Giveaway

Can Money Buy Happiness? by Nancy Fraser #RomanceGems

Can money buy happiness?

One of the most often debated proverbs/statements. Originally coined back in 1750 by Rousseau, his original quote or some variation has lived on for over two-hundred years.

So, can money buy happiness? Yes! Damned straight!

I've had money, I've been without money. I can tell you first-hand, having is definitely better than not. I'm not talking about just enough money to eek out the necessities (although that's nice). I'm talking about discretionary income that can be spent in any way the person sees fit.

Some (lucky) people will never know the fear of standing in line at the grocery store and crossing your fingers after sliding your credit or debit card into the terminal slot. I've been there. Even though I don't have that worry any more, I still sometimes find myself holding my breath until the "approved" message comes through. I guess old habits die hard.

Here's a few personal things that eat up my discretionary funds but give me unlimited happiness:

• Being able to give a weekly offering at church. I don't support the mega-church philosophy. As the granddaughter of a Methodist minister from the south, I understand the importance of a community-based place of worship and know that my church is in for the right reasons rather than for money.
• Being able to donate money to worthy causes throughout the year rather than just at Christmas. I've never understood why it's so important to be a generous person only during the holidays. If anything, it's easier on the pocketbook to donate at time when you're not buying presents for friends and family.
• Being able to give my sons and their families money when they need it, rather than loan it to them. I've never understood the sense of a loan when they'll get whatever is left when I'm gone anyway.
• Being able to take all five of my grandchildren on grand adventures.

And then, of course, there are the things that give me quiet joy:

• Being able to purchase or download any book I want, when I want it.
• Being able to finance the monetary side of my writing (e.g., promo, website, travel, computer upgrades).
• Being able to get that frothy, foo-foo coffee, if I'm so inclined (although I prefer a plain, light roast with double cream).
• Being able to go out to eat with a friend and pick up the tab. Not because I want to be a big-shot, but because I enjoy their company and would never consider asking for payback. I simply don't understand the concept of "you got this one, I'll pay next time". However, I also would never knowingly make the other person uncomfortable.
• Being able to attend concerts, even when the tickets are more than my monthly condo association payment.

The comparison to "buying happiness" and "you can't buy your health" always confuses me too. Why can't you have both? If I'm feeling good, I'm happy. So, if I can afford to eat better and more expensive foods, attend a gym and even partake in some personal training, and purchase herbal medications or vitamins that contribute to my overall wellness ... isn't that "buying good health happiness"?

So where did all this introspection come from? I was at a book-signing for local authors the other day and a "browser" asked rather sarcastically, "What do you authors do with all your money?" We laughed, and laughed. And laughed. See? Even her snarky comment bought me some happiness!

It did get me thinking though about what's important and how I do spend those few extra dollars. It made me realize that happiness, like health, can be bought. We just have to know the difference between buying our happiness and actually owning it!

~ ~ ~

Speaking of happiness ... you should check out our Monthly Giveaway tab for instruction on entering this month's contest!

Beach reads! Another wonderful, and inexpensive, form of happiness!

Until next month, stay happy!

Nancy

The Process of a Book by Karen Whiddon #RomanceGems

Over the years, friends and relatives have often expressed surprise when they learned I was working on edits or revisions.  This post, I thought I'd discuss the path one of my books takes from inside my brain to publication.  Bear in mind, I'm traditionally published for new work with Harlequin, though once I get the rights back to some of my older books, I sell them as e-books too.  This post will touch mostly on my Harlequin books.

First, I think of a story.  For me, I'm contracted for books I haven't even thought of yet, so I spend a couple weeks working on a synopsis that describes my hero, heroine, secondary characters, and story.  (See my other post on writing a synopsis.)

Once the synopsis is done, I email it to my editor with a cc to my agent.

My editor will send back an email (usually after a week or two) approving the synopsis.  At this point, she might suggest a few tweaks.  By now, I've started writing the book as I have pretty tight deadlines.

Over the course of three months, writing 5 days a weeks (sometimes 6 if it's not going well,) I will write the book.  For Harlequin Romantic Suspense, this comes out to 70,000 words or for me, around 315 pages.  

I turn in the book.  They ask for a dedication and a dear reader letter, which I write and provide.

And work on another synopsis, at which point the process starts all over again.

Eventually I will get back edits from my editor.  At Harlequin, frequently two or three people will have already worked on the book.  They are very thorough.  I'm given a time frame (generally two weeks) to work on this.  I do and email it back.

Finally, I get what are called AA's (Author Alterations.)  This is the final stage of the book, where it appears exactly as it will in print.  At this point, I look it over and when I read it through, I send it back with any corrections I might find.

At some point, the publisher sends me the cover art.  Usually, it's beautiful and I'm thrilled.  Every once in a while, it might not be exactly what I pictured, but I can't do anything about that, so I just cross my fingers and hope for the best as far as sales.  I truly believe great cover art can help sell a book.  

And then I wait for the publication date.

My previously published works where rights revert back to me are different.  Once I have the rights back, I convert the file.  I have to remove all the metadata from Harlequin.  I purchase my own cover (in my case, since I'm on a budget, it's a pre-made cover.)  And I put it up for sale at Amazon.

Right now, I have just put up one of my favorite books that I've ever written.  It's called Profile for Seduction.  It can be read for free in Kindle Unlimited, or purchased here: Amazon

Another Great July Celebration

Last, but definitely not least is our fabulous July Giveaway.

Our Rafflecopter, BEACHES and BOOK BOYFRIENDS, starts July 5 at midnight and runs through July 25.  Contest link

Check out the giveaway'svideo in Movie Theater or onYouTube. (Please click LIKE and share it on your social media pages.)

Visit the Monthly Giveaway page to see all the prizes. Enter often and tell your friends. There are some great prizes up for grabs. Visit me tomorrow on Romance Gems for a Pop-Up Giveaway.

Reinventing a Published Work by @JoanReeves #RomanceGems

For the last couple of years, I've been trying to find the time to reinvent some published ebooks that had only a tenuous connection to each other. These are the short stories in A Moment in Time series.

The first of these stories was LuvU4Ever, written on a late December day when I realized I hadn't published anything that entire year.

You see, 2014 was a year of renovating the home we'd bought northwest of Houston (contractor said 3 months *ROTFL) then the unpacking.

By May, I was in the doctor's office. The rest of the year is a fog created by prescription muscle relaxers to help me deal with the pain of strained muscles in the rhomboid group of my right shoulder.

Back to My Story Reno

Writing the short story, set in December, gave me a boost. I decided if I couldn't get an actual book written, at least I could do a short story.

The story was also my way of dealing with a friend's depressing situation, kind of writing a reversal on what had happened in real life. That's what I love about writing fiction. I can wave my magic wand and make everything work out well in the end.

Time rocked along, and I wrote Last Chance New Year, my second short story.

Huh. Set at another holiday. Also, to my surprise, I found myself writing "in" the couple in the first short story. They played matchmaker for the second couple.

Plus, the new couple both worked at the company owned by the first story's hero. I hadn't planned that. It just happened.

A few months later, I wrote a third story, Blame It On Chocolate.

Geez! Another holiday and with some of the people from the other stories referenced.

Obviously, my Muse was trying to make a series out of these stories! The problem with that was her timing sucked!

A Valentine's story published in July? My Muse needs to get a calendar and/or get inspired before a holiday, not months after!

Planning and Timing

Last year, on my writing goal list, I put down "rewrite the 3 existing stories, reinforcing the links between them, and outline another 10 stories, each set during a monthly holiday celebration.

My plan was to end up with a 13 story series that began with a Christmas and ended with a Christmas.

I got to work on it this year. First I outlined all the other stories and created relationship links with everyone from the first book to the last! That was a job!

Then I had my cover artist take my original covers and incorporate the main art into a new cover. I branded better by consistently using the graphic style on each cover and also incorporated font consistency.

I've managed to get the first story, LuvU4Ever edited. The new version is on Amazon. (These short stories are wide, but I'm going to remove them from other channels until I have the other 2 edited.)

I had planned to publish a short story every month, but then I undertook the Romance Gems journey! As if that wasn't challenging enough, I accepted too many contract deadlines, and had a lot of life crap happen. *LOL* That's the way I rock and roll, it seems.

LuvU4Ever is free on Amazon and should be free on all Amazon Kindle shops, but I won't guarantee it.

Seems a reader in another country told me she had to pay whatever the equivalent of 99centts was. So if you go to grab a free copy, make sure it shows as free.

This next weekend, I'll have the other 2 short stories edited and uploaded. If you want to read them, wait until Sunday please to check them out.

So that's my Pop-Up Giveaway for you this month.

By the way, the snow scene on the cover of LuvU4Ever was taken near downtown Houston.

We've had a lot of freaky winter weather since 2013 including snow from 2013 through 2017.

Now let me tell you about our Fabulous July Giveaway.

Beaches and Book Boyfriends

Our Rafflecopter opens at midnight July 5 so as soon as you finish your July 4 fireworks, you can go online and enter. The Giveaway runs through July 25.

You can watch a video about our giveaway in Movie Theater or on YouTube. (I appreciate LIKEs and shares on your social media pages.)

The Monthly Giveaway page lists all the prizes. Enter often and tell your friends about Romance Gems.

Romance Gems July Rafflecopter Giveaway

Happy July! Bring the Heat! by @JoanReeves #RomanceGems

Hello, Gorgeous!

That is, hello to the gorgeous summer month of July, one of my favorite months of the year!

(I stole that line from what Barbra Streisand, portraying actress Fanny Brice, said in the movie, Funny Girl.)

Now, many of you may wonder what I find so great about July.

Yes, it's usually the hottest month for just about everyone. Stay tuned for my list.

7 Reasons to Love July

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

1. Picnics — All the really good picnics seem to be in July. We start with July 4 with enough food to feed an army. The BBQ grills are loaded with chicken drumsticks and/or steaks, and the smokers are slowly turning briskets into tender, juicy smoked meats.

2. Baseball games — Here in Houston, we have the Astros (Go, Stros!) as well as the Skeeters, a minor league team in a suburban city. Then there are the college teams, and baseball on TV. I grew up listening to the baseball games with my grandfather who tuned it in on the radio. Ah, those were the best times.

3. Incredibly long days — I love that we can sit out in the evening, and it's really not dark until about nine-o'clock. We have a courtyard patio in front beneath a giant live oak tree. There's a bench and chairs so we can share a glass of wine with neighbors or chat with those doing their walking in the evening.

Image by Jill Wellington from Pixabay

4. Ice tea and Snowcones — We're always being told to drink 8 glasses of water a day. That's pretty boring. Ice tea kicks our fluid intake up a notch. It has antioxidants and bio-flavonoids so it's actually healthy too. (Want to know how to make ice tea and my magic trick to please those who like it sweet or unsweetened?) In the heat, snowcone stands pop up like fairy rings after a rain. I'll take a cherry please. Eating one makes me feel like a kid again.

5. Homemade ice cream — I don't know why, but we only make ice cream in the summer. I guess it's habit from the days when we had to sit outside and turn the crank on the ice cream freezer. We all took turns when we were kids. Even though I have an electric one now that we can use inside, it's still fun to sit outside and let it churn away. I have the best recipe in the world: Maybelle's Vanilla Ice Cream. Don't laugh. That really was her name, and she was a sweet lady who has long since passed away, but her recipe lives on.

6. Watermelon — This is absolutely the best fruit that was ever created. I could eat it every day without growing tired of it. Even though you can buy them year round thanks to imported fruits, they're just never as good as in the middle of summer.

Image by PDPhotos from Pixabay

7. Fireworks — I have no idea how many fireworks displays there are on July 4, but there are a lot. We can usually sit outside and see fireworks in the distance.

We've been to a lot of fireworks shows over the years, but I like the one at our place in the country best.

Sponsored by local businesses, the fireworks are set up on a golf course near us.

We sit on the porch with patriotic music streaming and have a show that lasts for hours.

Another Great July Celebration

Last, but definitely not least is our fabulous July Giveaway.

Our Rafflecopter, BEACHES and BOOK BOYFRIENDS, starts July 5 at midnight and runs through July 25.

Check out the giveaway's video in Movie Theater or on YouTube. (Please click LIKE and share it on your social media pages.)

Visit the Monthly Giveaway page to see all the prizes. Enter often and tell your friends. There are some great prizes up for grabs. Visit me tomorrow on Romance Gems for a Pop-Up Giveaway.


Romance Gems July Rafflecopter Giveaway