Why I love to be scared.... by Peggy Jaeger

 So...

Halloween is just around the corner. I'm not gonna talk about how it will be such a different celebration this year because of the way the world is right now. I mention Halloween as an introduction to my topic today WHY I LOVE TO BE SCARED.

Now, I often admit, I am not like other people. If you've ever read my bio sheet on my webpage you know there are some unusual things about me. One eye larger than the other, my favorite book and song, and the fact that I love scary movies - the scarier the better.

And I'm not talking about those torture-porn movies like SAW 1- 56, or The Texas chainsaw massacre. Those movies were made for bloody shock value and aren't scary as much as shocking and...gross.

No, I'm talking about melt down in to your seat, cover your eyes, close one of them, and don't breath, scary movies.

For example... when I was a 12 THE EXORCIST premiered. People were fainting and throwing up in the theater. Not me. I hunkered down and planted my butt waaaaaay down in the seat, lifted my legs so my  knees were up around my chin and then spent two hours scared to death.

Loved every second of it.

The OMEN was another childhood scare fest. SILENCE OF THE LAMBS still gets to me when I catch it while channel surfing. And forget about JAWS. I haven't dipped a toe in the ocean since that movie released in 1975.

Those are the movies that do it for me, not the persistent blood, guts and gore of so many filmmakers theses day. To be truly scared you need to have a visceral reaction to what you are seeing, plus an intellectual one - where you ENVISION or just know what is going to happen, and THAT is why you are terrified. In writing we call this foreshadowing during a romantic suspense novel. Great filmmakers like Alfred Hitchcock and Steven Spielberg know this and it shows in all their films.

SO, tell me, because my inquiring mind wants to know: What was the scariest movie you ever saw, and why was it so scary?

On that note, I wish everyone a Happy Halloween, albeit it will be a different day than we're used to. I didn't even buy candy this year!!

Looking for me ( on Halloween or any other day, lol?) here I am: FOLLOW ME

Coffee and Conversation with the #RomanceGems

It's time for Coffee and Conversation with the Romance Gems! So, grab a cup of your favorite beverage and join us for some fun. This month's topic is: What’s the STRANGEST thing you’ve done to a character (or characters) in one of your books?

We all send our characters on journeys. We’re writers, after all, so conflict is essential. Some romance subgenres are likely nicer/kinder than others, but either way your imaginary people need to go through some stuff to reach their happily-ever-after. Have you sent them on a grueling voyage or put them in danger? Maybe your “strangest thing” is something funny, like you’ve put them in an embarrassing situation? Let’s talk!

“In TODAY, TOMORROW, ALWAYS, I made widowed lawyer Cathleen O’Dowd attend a speed dating night. Organized by her friend, the local matchmaker, she coerced Cathleen into trying it so she could dip her toes into the dating pool again. She’d married the only boy she’d ever kissed and had been a widow for 3 years, so it was time to “get out there again.” Needless to say it was a disaster – a comic one – but a disaster all the same.” ~ Peggy Jaeger

“Not strange, but the stupidest thing I ever did was to kill off a beloved character. I will never do that again! When my Kensington (Zebra Historical) editor came back and asked me to add a book to my existing Brides of Bath trilogy (a long time ago--the series now has seven books), I felt I didn't have a way to expand it unless I took a secondary romance from Book 1, made the wife die, and made him the grieving hero of Book 4 (released back in 2004). Readers were distraught. Because the dead woman was so beloved, it did make his grieving palpable--and deserving of his new happily ever after!” ~ Cheryl Bolen

“In The Cowboy's Charms, I send my heroine, Angelique, on a cattle drive. It was pretty tough for her. Not only was she a society girl who was having to play cowgirl, but she ended up being accused of sabotage by the man she loved. It was pretty difficult for her. But she toughs it out. It was awesome to write and read!”

~ Kara O'Neal

“In my vintage, 1960s Halloween-themed book, Bewitched, my hero is a bachelor who doesn't "do" kids. My heroine runs a very busy daycare center directly across the street. “When she's called away on an emergency, the hero reluctantly agrees to help out with the children in her absence. He’s just settling in and getting comfy, when a crayon-eating toddler throws up on him in vivid technicolor and ruins an expensive jacket and Italian leather shoes! Needless to say, he escapes as quickly as possible! But ... we’ll he eventually come back?” ~ Nancy Fraser

“In A Soft Place to Fall, the heroine, Early, moved back to where she'd grown up so that she could take care of her former father-in-law as he recuperated from open-heart surgery. While there, her mother broke her ankle and ended up moving in, too. Since Early was in no way a saint, I was surprised I piled this on her. She performed admirably.” ~ Liz Flaherty

“Keith Cho is a very quiet hero and I had a difficult time figuring him out. One of the secrets he finally shared with Samantha, the heroine, is that as a kid he participated in talent shows doing musical theater. At one point in the story, they are tied up and unable to get free, and Sam is injured. Keith serenades Sam with showtunes to keep her spirits up and her awake. Keith and Sam star in Death Race, book 5 in the Love on the Line romantic suspense series (releasing May 2021)” ~ Kari Lemor

“I love to challenge my characters. In HOPE, I have the hero, Percy, hire a hot air balloon ride as a birthday surprise for Hope, something on the list of adventures she longs to experience now that she’s on her own. Despite his fear of heights Percy joins her on the ride, where he learns confronting his fear in an attempt to banish it doesn’t necessarily work the way he hoped. For her part, Hope is charmed to learn Percy is not perfect.” ~ Kathleen Lawless

“One of the ten most dangerous jobs is commercial fishermen. In my story, Midnight Escape, the hero is a commercial crab fisherman who goes out to the Bering Sea. He is protecting the heroine from the mob, and the only way he could think to protect her was to take her out with him on his crab boat. The event was an adventure the heroine never thought she’d ever experience in her life, and of course, it help her to fall in love with the fisherman!” ~ Constance Bretes

“I think the strangest thing I’ve done to a character is have him let a dog play matchmaker. That’s what happens to recent widower and grouch Kirk Fontaine in Not-So-Blue Christmas. He’s been ignoring Bella for weeks, but she always finds a way to get to him. The first time he relents and pets her, he finds himself caught by feisty, vivacious widow Miranda Bailey who needs a bit of Christmas magic herself. These are seasoned characters. Kirk is 51 and Miranda’s 47…far too young to give up on love and, with Bella’s help, they don’t have to.” ~ Bonnie Edwards

“In my book STUART, Georgina Potter’s family treated her as a screw-up so she signed up as a mail-order bride. She arrived to learn her “businessman” groom was a saloon owner who had married a saloon girl rather than wait for Georgina. The two women got into a brawl, started by the saloon girl. When the sheriff intervened, Georgina accidentally socked him in the eye. The irate sheriff marched Georgina down the town’s main street to jail. Stuart McGee arrived two days later to ask the sheriff’s recommendation for a woman to help with the orphan he’d found.” 

~ Caroline Clemmons

"What’s that saying? There’s none so strange as folk. Years ago I wrote a book titled, Hook, Line and Single. Roxanne Ingram is divorced and about to turn 40. She’s on a quest to find Mr. Right and willing to explore all options. Back then, Internet Dating, Lock & Key, and Speed Dating events weren’t that common. Roxanne meets every creep and weirdo there is, until Mr. Perfect comes along. Except Mr. Perfect isn’t so perfect. He’s been accused of attempting to murder his wife." ~ Marcia King-Gamble

“In my book, Haunting Highland House, I move a self-proclaimed ‘city girl,’ Samantha Merrill, from Manhattan to an isolated estate on Cape Cod. It only takes one night for the mysterious owner of the mansion to appear and protest her living in his house. There’s only one problem. Robert Pennington has been dead for over a century.” ~ Kathryn Hills

Okay, now it's your turn to join the conversation! Do you have a favorite book in which the characters really go through something to reach their happily-ever-after?

Add your comments below or send via email through the "contact us” link on the bottom of the left sidebar. You can also make suggestions on what you'd like to discuss here in the future.

Thanks for joining us!

~ The Romance Gems ~

What Are The Brides of Bath? by Cheryl Bolen

Tomorrow my seventh offering in the Brides of Bath, Once Upon a Time in Bath, will be published. I never expected the series to go to seven books—and counting. 

I conceived a Brides of Bath trilogy a little over 20 years ago. In 2001 Kensington Books, which publishes Zebra Historicals, bought the trilogy, and it was published only in mass market paperback the following year. (No eBooks back then.)

The series’ performance must have pleased my publisher because my editor came back the next year and asked me to publish a fourth Brides of Bath book.

I was in a bit of a quandary. The trilogy was about the Pembroke siblings which consisted of the Viscount Sedgewick, his widowed sister Felicity, and their flight younger sister Glee. Other than Felicity’s friend Carlotta, I didn’t think my cast offered further candidates for heroes or heroines, so I did the unthinkable. 

I killed off a character from a subplot in Book One, The Bride Wore Blue. (I will never again do that. Readers loved that beloved character.)

Publisher Picked All My Titles

So the fourth book was published in 2004, again only in paperback. My publisher titled it An Improper Proposal. I was mortified. There was no improper proposal in the entire book. When I got back my rights to that book seven years later I renamed this marriage-of-convenience story ToTake This Lord. 

All of the first four Brides of Bath books’ titles were created by Kensington. They did well with the first, naming it The Bride Wore Blue (though my original story did not have a blue wedding dress!).

I also liked the second book’s title: With His Ring. It fit and had a good sound.

In the third book, Kensington selected A Fallen Woman over my cheesy title Beleaguered Bride. At first I really liked the A Fallen Woman. However, though readers loved that deeply emotional read, sales were abysmal. After I thought about it, I realized that I probably wouldn’t purchase a book about a fallen woman. When I got back my rights to that book, I titled it The Bride’sSecret.

 Extending the Series Twelve Years Later

Twelve years after the original trilogy was published I added Book 5, Love in the Library, and later that year I offered a novella titled Christmas in Bath, where all the characters from the previous books (except the “fallen woman”) play a part, along with a fresh romance. In that novella, I got the opportunity to tie up some loose ends from earlier books—loose ends my Kensington editors never saw, but readers did!

And tomorrow Once Upon a Time in Bath launches. For years readers have been asking for Appleton’s story, and finally I’ve listened.

There’s one more secondary character from the original cast that readers want to get his own story. Right now he’s The Last Bachelor.

And then The Last Bachelor has sisters who just may need to find husbands . . . Cheryl Bolen is the NY Times-USA Today bestselling author of more than three dozen books set in Regency England, many of which have won Best Historical honors. She’s a former journalist, teacher, and PTA mom who’s a frequent traveler to England and an addict of diaries of dead Englishwomen. 

FREE! For a limited time, the second Brides of Bath book, With His Ring,  is free. 

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The Germ of the Story by Judith Hudson

 

Hi everyone.

A story idea has to start somewhere, often with a random thought or image. For me, it is usually a place, or more specifically, an old building. In my current work in progress, it’s a hunting lodge. So far, predictably, I call it The Lodge.

This image is sort of what I had in mind, only bigger and more elaborate because it was built by the protagonist Holly’s great grandfather who was a lumber baron in the Pacific Northwest at the turn of the last century. A Victorian monstrosity, to quote Holly.

All of my stories seem to center around these buildings, and I have to wonder – what is it about old, derelict buildings and ruins that intrigues me, and how do they impact the people in the story?  The more I think about it, the more I see it is the history of these places and the stories they tell that gives my imagination flight. 

The cabin in the Fortune Bay series is a good example.

 

This building was around the corner from a house I lived in for a number of years, and I set the Fortune Bay stories around it. In the first story, the cabin has been empty for years, since Aunt Augusta died, but the spirit of the old lady is still active and eager to interact with the new story residents. 

In Temple of the Jaguar, the first Rocky and Bernadette mystery, it was a visit to an ancient Mayan ruin in the jungle that set my mind racing.

Beginning to see the pattern? The Lodge started out with the idea of the lodge itself, loosely patterned on a few old lodges I've visited here on the Island and in Washington State. In this book, Grandad has died and left it to two granddaughters he’s never known, and who don’t know him. Holly, the protagonist in book one, has only a vague memory of a long ago visit when she was a very young child. Now he’s gone, and she’s left to piece together the family history through  secrets hidden in plain sight in the rundown old mansion. 

Of course, there are more pieces to the story puzzle, but that was the start. There was Covid, and family interruptions, but now I’m glad to be back in the story again!

As a reader, I'm also often drawn  to old house settings, going right back to Nancy Drew and The Mystery at the Moss-Covered Mansion. What kind of books are you drawn to? Do you find yourself returning to the same kind of story again and again? Does setting play a part?

If you haven’t check out Goodreads, it is an amazing community, designed specially for readers and writers. Please find and follow me on Goodreads for more updates on how the new book is going.

Talk to you again next month.
Judy Hudson

www.JudithHudsonAuthor.com

PS – The ebook of The Good Neighbor, book two in the Fortune Bay series, is on sale on Amazon for 99 cents until the end of the month! You can read the books in any order.
See you on Goodreads!

Making Magic by Kathryn Hills #RomanceGems

 

It’s no secret. Anyone who knows me knows I LOVE Halloween. Not just because I enjoy scary things or buckets full of candy. (Um…we’ll talk about that later) The thing that truly gets me, right in my pumpkin-spiced-loving heart, is the excitement and mystery of the weeks leading up to the 31st. It’s that unsettled feeling, those goosebumps and shivers, which hint that something unexpected—even magical—is about to happen.

For me, these feelings began in childhood. I grew up in a time that heartily embraced Halloween. No rules about when or how you could Trick-Or-Treat. If the light was on, you rang the bell! I even went with friends on the way home from school. After the big costume parade and party, of course. Does anyone remember making orange and black paper chains to decorate your classroom? Scary decorations, pumpkins, running in the dark. We laughed until our sides hurt and ate way too much candy. My best friend and I would tremble and lock arms when we passed “the haunted house.” You know the place. Every town has one.

Throughout the years, I added many more special Halloween magic memories. College events, my first apartment gathering with Mr. H. and our friends, and later introducing our own daughter to the things we love. The best of times as we dressed up, decorated, baked, and watched fun, spooky shows, and movies together. The magic—all there, only different.

This year at Camp Hills, we dug out our decorations and even added some new ones. Darling Daughter put up a Halloween Tree for the first time. It’s black with purple lights and fabulous Halloween ornaments. FANTASTIC! (You can find many great options on Etsy) DD’s are Tim Burton-themed…Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride. We grew our own pumpkins and supported a favorite local farm by buying the BIGGEST ones we could find there. 30 lbs.+ each - no kidding! We needed wagons to get them to the car. You know they'll be outstanding Jack-o'-Lanterns providing yummy seeds aplenty! 

The spirit of the season is also alive and well on the pages my books. My Time Traveler’s Journey Series books (Haunting Highland House & Hellfire and Handbaskets) are on sale for 99 cents each as a Halloween treat for romance readers. Characters in both the past and present experience the magic along with ghostly surprises.

My advice? Eat the candy, bake the goodies, light candles, read hauntingly romantic novels, and watch your favorite shows. That's what I'll be doing!

I’d love to hear what you’re up to this year, so please share.

Happy Halloween, ALL!

~ Kathryn

SOMETHING NEW COMING SOON!

Join me and 9 of my favorite author in the small New England town of Dickens!

Pre-Order the CHRISTMAS COMES TO DICKENS romance anthology now

for delivery on 10/26/20 (That's next week - YAY!)

Just 99 cents!

And don't forget your FREE companion cookie recipe book!

Download IT'S A DICKENS OF A COOKIE! today

Falling into Fall Down South!

 

By:  Marcia King-Gamble

www.lovemarcia.com

Most people  think there's only one  season down south,  Summer! Summer! and more Summer! But that's so not true.

We have a wet season, dry season, and eternal summer. All three tend to go on forever. But if  you live here long enough, you realize that the seasons may be defined by what the locals wear.

Right now, it's mid-October, considered almost the dry season,but reality says differently. It's been pouring nonstop  for days, and it is still hot! hot! hot! My air conditioning is on full blast, and because of the heat factor (high eighties), I am still wearing shorts (a no-no for locals after September). For you folk up north, think of it in the same manner as wearing white after labor day.

Let me tell you a secret. As the cooler, drier season approaches, we can usually spot tourists because they are the only ones in shorts.   The same goes for picking out tourists/snowbirds  in  nice restaurants and bars. Rarely will you see a local out in shorts at night, unless they are heading for a Tiki bar, and even then. Enough said. Google snowbird.

The holidays, though, are an entirely different matter. Down south,  we use any excuse to get in the mood and  party. I have seen more snowmen on lawns in a place that  never snows,  than  I have ever seen up north. Yes, we like snow and cold weather from a distance, and in December we've even brought snow making machines in so  young kids can play.

When October comes around, we 're thinking holidays. The pinks, reds and teals get exchanged for  oranges, yellows and browns. The lemons, pineapples and sunflowers are put away,( I still rock em until I can't find em),  Then again, I dance to a different beat, and always have. I am a sucker for the holidays and my cluttered garage is testimony to that.

Come any change of season, the frustrated decorator in me emerges. The key is to bargain shop for those decorations.  If they don't work, toss them out. Here's what I did with my table, and it's super easy to do. Use wine glasses if you don't have candle holders. These are easily picked up at stores like Marshalls, or Old Time Pottery. Fill the bowl up with leaves or fake veggies bought at the Dollar Store. The other option is turning over the candle holders, keeping the fruit, potpourri  or whatever you've  added in the bowls. The flat parts, or feet now become your candle holders. Add candles or tea lights and you are rockin' n rollin'.

Your table can adjust to the seasons by simply changing what you've placed in the bowls. You can circle the base with festive  wreaths, or have Mardi Gras beads hang from those bowls.  Here's  what I did for Easter and Christmas.

Now I have Halloween on the brain, and I'm thinking about what I'll be wearing to the party. Virtual this year, of course.  I am a fan of  the homemade costume.  Check your closets, add a couple of accessories from Walmart or the Dollar Store, and you are set. This is my Alice White Rabbit costume, consisting of one white jumpsuit, and a Dollar Store boa and bunny ears.

And since we're talking about partying, don't miss the Last Call for Last Chance Beach: Summer's End. You can still pick up these short  stories at the bargain price of 99 cents until October 31st. 

Here's the link. https://www.amazon.com/Last-Chance-Beach-Summers-End-ebook/dp/B08CV3GN3R

Have a Happy Halloween one and all!

About Marcia King-Gamble:

Originally from a sunny Caribbean island where the sky and ocean are the same mesmerizing shade of blue, this travel industry executive has spent most of life in the United States. A National Bestselling author, Marcia has penned over 34 books and 8 novellas. Her free time is spent at the gym, traveling to exotic locales, and caring for an animal family that keep her sane. Well almost.

Visit Marcia at www.lovemarcia.com or “friend” her on Facebook: http://bit.ly/1MlnrIS

Be sure to email her to join her mailing list. 

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Transitioning Between Holidays by Nancy Fraser

Ah...the holidays! The spookiness of Halloween, the good food and family gathered around the Thanksgiving table. Then, there's Christmas and the author's urge to write a story worthy of a Hallmarkesque holiday movie with all the cozy feels?

However, before we get to Christmas, we have to get past my second favorite holiday ... Halloween! Or, we could just mix the two of them together for some awesome entertainment and a take on Tim Burton's wonderful "The Nightmare Before Christmas".

I suppose I should acknowlege Thanksgiving, even though -- as a Canadian resident -- I've already had mine. Not to worry, I'll dig down deep to my American heritage during my column next month and share some of my favorite recipes fit for your holiday table! I promise. 

Now ... to get on with what I believe is a perfect set of holiday tropes all wrapped up in one anthology ... Christmas Comes to Dickens. Ten best selling authors, ten brand-new holiday novellas.

The holiday season is in full swing in the quaint New England town of Dickens. We have all sorts of fun holiday activities to share such as a Christmas tree lighting in the town square, ice skating on Grosvenor’s Pond, sleigh rides, cutting down your own Christmas tree at Gridley Meadows, caroling on the Common. You name it—Dickens has it all!

While some of our stories may interact with one another, others may not. We hope you will do as we did and enjoy the magic that is the holiday season, no matter when it's taking place.

Our storybook setting abounds with romance, children’s wishes, much needed miracles and—maybe even—a touch of magic!

Join us as our best selling and award-winning authors fill your holiday stocking with ten brand new novellas ranging from sweet to sassy, including:

Millie’s Awesome Holiday Miracle by Top 100 Best Selling Author Nancy Fraser - Can one little girl fill the holiday season with enough miracles for everyone? This story will warm your heart.

Miracle at Holly Hill Inn by Top 100 Best Selling Author Maddie James - Ariana is looking for the perfect Christmas. Instead, she finds a Scrooge. Will two days snowbound at Holly Hill Inn bring them together?

Holiday Hearts by Top 100 Best Selling Author Caroline Clemmons - Laura is funny, beautiful, and smart. She’s not about to date her boss. Can Ward convince her he’s not just looking for a holiday fling?

The Tinsel Tango by Best Selling Author Bonnie Edwards - She needs R&R. He teaches Tango. Or does he? Can love survive secrets & hidden agendas when a dance teacher is exposed as a wealthy tycoon?

Wisdom of the Heart by USA Today Best Selling Author Liz Flaherty - Best friends fell in love in high school. But life, families & distance happened along the way. Could they still be in love?

Operation Snowball by Best Selling Author Kathryn Hills - Returning home to Dickens is hard for Army veteran, John Gridley. The last thing he expects to find is love with a pretty widow.

Angel Kisses and Holiday Wishes by Best Selling Author Peggy Jaeger - Sage left years ago, leaving Keith's heart in tatters. She's back as his grandmother’s doctor. Is there hope for them?

Holly’s Wish by Top 100 Best Selling Author Kathleen Lawless - What if the girl who got away is standing right in front of you? Years ago, they shared one magical Christmas Eve. Is it too late for them now?

Holiday Heart Wishes by Best Selling Author Lucinda Race - Vera picks up Tony, a stranded motorist, on her way back to Dickens. Will they discover their heart wishes can come true at Christmas? 

Santa’s Wish by Best Selling Author Jan Scarbrough - Will Christmas magic help them overcome the obstacles of her dashed career ambitions and his grief so they can find a second chance at love?

And don't forget to get your FREE copy of our recipe book It's a Dickens of a Cookie!

Until next month ... stay happy, stay healthy, stay safe and stay well read.

Nancy